


Letters From the Other

by skinandbones



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Bittersweet, Eventual Happy Ending, Feelings and Love, Fluff, Freeform, Hurt/Comfort, Keith writing messages to Lance, Loneliness, M/M, Message in a bottle, Only for one scene, Post-Apocalypse, Rape/Non-con Elements, Slice of Life, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Survival, Torture, Two worlds, exchange of letters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-24
Updated: 2017-11-19
Packaged: 2018-08-16 23:31:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 15
Words: 35,808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8121808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skinandbones/pseuds/skinandbones
Summary: Lance finds bottles drifting in the waters with letters inside written from a boy of another world beyond his. It’s puzzling, adventurous, and impossible but Lance doesn’t mind the messages, mostly intrigued by the writer behind them. Eventually, Lance discovers him to be quite the character and maybe more.What awaits for him on the other side?





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to my second multi-chapter fic, everyone! I really shouldn't be writing this especially when this AU is more of a mystery than anything else. This idea suddenly popped into my head without much details... What I do know is that we have two separate worlds but there is a boundary that allows Keith to do what he does. We can call them mirror worlds too... like looking at a mirror you see yourself but there's actually another person staring back at you from the other side??? If that makes sense.
> 
> Please enjoy and let me know what you think!
> 
> -
> 
>  _Italics_ = Keith's letter

Blue. Blue. Blue. The color of the sea, the sky, and all things Lance found beauty in. It couldn't be anymore perfect, and his days were as peaceful and quiet as he wanted it to be. No one to disturb him, he had the entire island to himself, and the time to enjoy what he loved most.

One morning day, it all changed for Lance. It started with a single bottle he found floating in the ocean. Inside, he found paper neatly rolled up with a string tied together. It must be one of those little hobbies that people did, writing letters full of wishes and hopes, dreams and promises to be made, or a love letter to someone dear. Maybe a goodbye or hello that will forever drift away.

Curiously, Lance took the letter out, feeling the weight of it and spun it around with interest. Was it terrible of him to read it? Would it break some kind of universe law that these secrets weren’t meant to be open? He guessed it was a love letter, lines and lines of juicy details with someone pouring their heart and soul into it, and threw it into the sea. It was a secret that sailed away and never to be recovered.

Enough of this. Curiosity killed the cat, right? Lance untied the string and unfolded the parchment, eyes studying the words in a neat handwriting.

_Lance,_

_I hope this letter finds you well when it reaches you._

_Let me believe it did. You may not believe me but there are a lot of things I want to say to you but I’m afraid it'll ruin everything if I told you the entire truth._

_Granted, I'm a little scared but maybe there are some things I can tell you. Things that you'll enjoy. How the sun is already set here and the sky is nothing but a clear night view. The stars are out and beautiful, and worlds out there waiting to be discovered, don't you think?_

_I remembered you wanting to go up there one day. Take a rocket ship and we'll travel anywhere, just say the word. It was a beautiful dream._

_But that dream is in the past and now the sand underneath my feet is cool but better when the water dips between my toes. I don't mind the sand much, sometimes it's annoying when it's in your shoes or it places you don't really want._

_Sorry, almost lost track there. You’re probably wondering why I would write to you specifically…_

_Would it be crazy to say that I found you? It's a mind blowing reality really._

_Maybe I'm living in a dream or it’s as simple as feeling that tug pulling you forward and you just know that this is where you belong. Forgive me, you might find me rambling these silly things along the way, don't mind me._

_Our worlds are so far apart but I think of it as a mirror, wherever you are, I’m right here. Just on the other side waiting but waiting for what exactly? I guess that's one mystery you'll have to solve._

_Right now, you’re probably wondering who I am. Probably best to introduce myself  before you find this completely nonsense. I’m Keith. Keith Kogane and I already know your name. Surprise, Lance McClain, I know that name very well._

_I think that’s all I’ll write for now._

_If you don't mind me asking, well... I wouldn't know but let's pretend for a moment. Will I hear from you? All you have to do is write back and send the bottle into the sea. A guy can hope but I don't think you’re not much of a letter person. That’s okay. I’ll keep writing to you, every day, if you're fine with that._

_I should go, it’s getting late so I’ll say my good night or maybe a good day to you is more appropriate._

_Until next time,_

_Keith_

A stranger from another world.

How odd.

He rolled the letter back into its bottle. He didn’t know what he expected but as he looked at the setting sun on the horizon, taking in the hues of warm oranges and blues, he wondered if another letter will reach him again.


	2. Chapter 2

The waters were calm, a pleasant day to take the boat out and fish for today’s lunch. Lance had been out for an hour and already caught two so far. He tilted his straw hat up and looked out into the distance, seeing nothing but the ocean. No boats or passers-by greeting a hello. He only kind of hoped to find another bottle making its way to him but there was nothing of the sort.

While the rod sat next to Lance, he laid comfortably against his boat, letting himself bathe in the natural light of a summer’s day. Fishing was one of his hobbies beside surfing, something about learning to be patient and appreciating the silence when on the waters. Of course, he can’t forget the thrill that’ll take his breath away when reeling in a big catch.

The line started to tug and immediately, Lance managed to snag another victory before heading back to shore.

Everything tasted great when he skewered the fish over the fire pit, even adding a squeeze of lemon juice made it even better. Despite the tasty meal, the letter kept replaying in his head. Every sentence on that paper called out to him, and questions nagged in his brain. It was odd but Keith didn’t sound like bad person, per say. He can’t really judge him when he didn’t know his face or who he was but Keith knew him it seemed. That was one mystery Lance wanted to solve.

Lance kept that letter in a small box under his bed, figured it was best to start a record of them because he was sure to receive more.

It was a little tempting to write Keith back, assuming the message would get to him without a problem but how does it all work? Just throw a bottle into the ocean and pray it’ll arrive safely? Instant shipping? Was it that simple? Can’t be. Too many variables. Too many unknowns. So he decided to wait. He was good at that.

Lance stretched his arms upward and yawned. He sat back against his seat and curled his arms behind his head as he glanced at the sky above.

“Who are you, Keith?”

Then there was a _clink_.

He sat up and heard the sound again and again. He made his way over to where the noise was. His boat came to view and what he found as he got closer was a green bottle hitting it with the waves gently rocking the container side to side.

A smile adorned his face. He picked it up and uncorked it before retrieving the letter out. He walked back to the fire site and sat to read it.

_Hey Lance,_

_I wonder, do you like sunsets or sunrises? I think my favorite are sunrises. The first light, a start of a new day. They represent a beginning too, don’t you think? I want to start something new with you if you allow it, or you can tell me to fuck off and I will._

_But I don’t want it to come to that. Please._

_We can start with something small but where do I even begin? Hm, do you want to know how I know about you, Lance? But first, I want to tell you the kind of man you were._

_Are you ready?_

_You were the impossible. Fearless. Worthy. Heart of gold, everything I held dear. Sort of romantic, huh? Hope you don't mind. I believe honesty is important, the truth of all things, and my words are bleeding with it. You had the strength of a thousand soldiers and without a doubt, you became that unbreakable wall. You held the world together but most of all, you were kind, beautiful... Loved. Always loved._

_And I loved that about you just like how I loved the stars here. Would you laugh if I asked you did it hurt when you fell from the heavens? Please don’t but sometimes I think you’re much more than that. It’s indescribable. You changed my life, after all._

Before Lance continued, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes, his fingers brushed against the smooth surface of the paper. Already, he can hear his heart beating within him, that feeling where his chest tightened as if he couldn't breathe. Maybe it was too much to take in.

He didn't understand. He wasn't this person. Never he heard anyone in his life wrote in such a specific way.

_if you're still reading this then I'm happy you haven't thrown this letter away._

_I should be a little careful from now on. Knowing you… you tend to get spooked easily. I'm sorry. Maybe I’ll explain how I know about you later on in my letters? It's a lot to take in and I don't want to overwhelm you. How about you take a dip in the sea? Let yourself be carried away or swim with the fishes, be friends with the dolphins. They were your favorite animals, I know._

_You loved the ocean dearly. Everything about it called your name. How it was close to your heart and you can’t get enough of it. It’s endless, treasures waiting to be discovered, and what’s better is that it belonged to you, am I right? Of course I am. You taught me to love the sea as well. In fact, you showed me a side of myself I didn’t know about and I wished you could've seen more of it._

_It doesn't matter now, right? Because you're here and I’m here. We’re living this very moment._

_I should stop, I've said too much. I’ll let you get back to whatever you’re doing. Hm, don't stay out too long in the sun though. Don't want you to get sunburn. Ha._

_Take care,_

_Keith_

Lance sighed. He wasn’t planning on getting sunburned anytime soon. He folded the paper and it went back into the bottle. Later, it was placed inside the box underneath his bed.

The day continued on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Find me at ramblesofskinandbones (Tumblr).


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's chapter 3. Thank you for the kudos and comments, everyone! Always makes a girl happy even though this AU is definitely a work in progress. And feel free to let me know what your thoughts on it especially what's really going on. It's simple. It really is... Maybe. I don't know. But writing letters is a calming exercise for me.

The smell of rain tickled Lance’s senses, it was a pleasant scent he found calming and borderline invigorating. The breeze danced through his hair, sweeping his hat off and into the air before it landed on the steps of his front door. Azure skies slowly devoid of light with time. He packed up his things and made sure his boat was secured tightly against the coconut tree.

Lance stepped on his porch and sat on his wooden chair, cutting up a mango to eat as he waited for the rain to come. It wasn’t going to be a heavy one but scattered showers for the day. There was much enjoyment listening to the sounds of droplets pattering against his home. Even though he preferred the sun much more, the rain was still his friend.

It started to pour and the sea swayed by the winds, crashing onto the rocks. Lance remained on his porch, eating the rest of his fruit while thinking about yesterday’s letter. His heart panged once more. He wasn’t even sure if he deserved such words from Keith. Lance was a simple man, he wasn’t a person worthy of such praise but deep inside, he liked the way he wrote. It was poetic.

After finishing up, Lance went inside and cleaned his knife and sticky hands by the sink. He then grabbed a drink from the fridge and eyed at the kitchen window with the view of the sea. Keith’s name subtly caressed the edge of his mouth before biting the bottom of his lips. A small black notebook laid on the kitchen counter and he went to grab it before walking out.

It was raining still.

He sat back down and opened to the page where he left off. There were sketches of multiple heads emptied without a face, just hair he played around with. He started drawing late at night as he thought about the possibilities of what Keith would looked like but he only saw an empty canvas.

If he asked Keith for a picture, would he give it to him?

Lance looked up and there it was, a dark speck floating through the currents but he knew it belonged to him and only to him.

Immediately, he sprung from his seat and ran out, crossing the sands and dived into the ocean. He didn’t care if he got salt water in his mouth or how it stung his eyes a little bit but he wanted it.

It was a success before the bottle really disappeared into the waters and he would’ve been screwed. He swam back to land.

Back into the house, he went to dry himself down before opening the bottle. Another letter and this time an old photograph came with it. It was bent around the edges, tainted with thin white lines like roots of an old tree and the colors faded due to time. He didn’t recognize it but he saw his younger self. How this Lance was grinning at the camera with his arms folded behind him as the water surrounded his feet. It was around the time of a sunset.

He didn’t understand it. What did all of this mean?

_Lance,_

_Good morning or is it good afternoon over there? Hopefully not a good night just yet._

_You saw the picture, right? We took a walk along the shore on that day ten years ago. It was in the beginning of June that we went and one of your favorite spots to chill. I couldn’t help but bring my camera along. There was no one there except us and the ocean view. You looked quite happy, as if you belonged in that place and time, and I wanted a memory of it._

_It’s funny how I forgotten but you told me once that you loved sunsets. Trust me, I’m not old… not even close._

_I think I understood why when I saw this picture, how everything fits together like a puzzle. Maybe it’s just how the light hugged your body, your freckles bathed against the warm colors. Even the ones along your shoulders too. I can’t put it into words but it was really stunning._

_And I asked you why you loved sunsets and you said to me they were a passage of time, how everything ends and the mysteries are left behind as the light fades, but it also meant a tomorrow for us. I always looked forward to our tomorrows._

_Does it scare you? Sometimes I feel like I am but here I am, writing to you like it’s the most natural thing to do. You know, I wait by the sea and hoped you might write back but it’s kind of too soon. I can take a guess and say you’re confused by the picture, I know, I’m sorry. If I told you the truth, would you write and demand an answer? I’m not forcing you to do that, it’s not my intention._

_Remember when I said you’re not a letter person? Well, pay attention, Lance. It started when we first met in Chemistry class. You gave me this yellow note and you know what you wrote? You liked my shirt because it had a dolphin on it. It was cool and that’s how it all started. These little conversations we had, they weren’t letters but ooh I couldn’t stop laughing. They were pretty funny and the little doodles you drew, I didn’t realize you were so creative. Our teacher actually caught us being sneaky and threw our notes away, she was pretty angry but we didn’t stop. It was our little secret. Sadly I don’t have them anymore, a lot of things were lost in the fire._

_And then we kind of grew apart, I guess that’s how life turned out for us. I think you were really upset, almost to the point of crying when you went away but I told you I would write to you every week. I recalled writing a lot and it took you a while to respond, probably 1 letter out of 7 from me. I wasn’t mad, believe me. I can never be mad at you. Your letters were short but they were always interesting. I learned a lot about you. I was really happy when I received them and managed to save some of my favorites too._

_And then something happened and the letters stopped. I didn’t understand why… I just_

Lance stopped and saw the dry stains on the paper. Tear marks.

_I just became frustrated and angry back then, It’s not your fault. I didn’t know why I did the things I did then. I wasn’t the greatest kid when you left. It was..._

_Sorry. I think that’s all I can write for tonight. Tomorrow will be better, I promise._

_Keith_

Lance’s notebook laid over the table. He had the slight urge to rip a piece of paper out and tell Keith that it was okay. That he was good because of these letters, proof that he wasn’t a bad person.

He didn’t move.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hm.

Waking up at random times at night didn’t work for Lance. He just couldn’t get Keith out of his head when he tried to will his body to go back to sleep. He kept tossing in his bed, attempting to find a comfortable position but it didn’t matter because his brain decided to be on high alert on this Keith character. 

Keith. Keith. Keith. 

It was all about him and Lance let out a moan into his pillow. He tried burying his head underneath it but that was a failure as well. He gave up, too frustrated to do anything else so he got out of bed and went to his desk by the wall. The switch of his lamp turned on. He grabbed a pencil and turned his notebook open. He started to sketch and drew for a while until sleep begged his body to shut down.

When morning arrived, Lance blinked as he tried opening his eyes but the sunlight seemed too strong to greet him on this day. It was true, he was more of a sunset person. He got up and stretched, regretting the pain in his lower back from sleeping over his desk. His notebook laid opened, drawings of sea life filled the entire page.

Lance started his morning brushing his teeth and showered before making a quick breakfast for himself. Some juice and scrambled eggs on toast for the day. The calendar pinned on his kitchen wall, today’s date circled with a red marker. 

How could Lance forget.

After finishing breakfast, he went to gather some buckets of seafood and head down to small boardwalk.

It was around this time of year when the stingrays appeared. Lance had his legs halfway into the water while he sat on the small steps leading down, his bucket readied next to him while one of the adult stingrays swam toward him. Lance threw a fish at him and the creature ate.

Stingrays were gentle creatures, sometimes reminding Lance of dogs but sea dogs. It was interesting because they minded their own business but they loved interacting with Lance since he came to this area every year. He believed some of them recognized him. It was a nice feeling. They weren’t afraid of meeting their favorite human who gave them free food. 

Another stingray came up to him, flapping its fins almost excitingly as Lance gave it some shrimp but it didn’t leave.

“Okay, okay. Here’s some more, you greedy bastard.” Lance threw in some extras and patted the surface of its fin. “Happy now?”

He almost wondered if Keith ever did something like this.

A whole group of them lazily swam in circles, some came for more food while the smaller ones stayed by the adults behind. It was a good day.

Once Lance finished and the stingrays made to their next destination, he fixed up some food for himself back home before deciding to go on his boat again. His brought his notebook with him as well.

To pass the time, he started to doodle again while the boat peacefully floated over the water. He sketched out the stingrays he saw, both fully grown and the young ones swimming together. When he looked up, he saw the pack swimming together around in an area which struck his curiosity but even more when he saw one of them swam toward him with a familiar bottle pushed in front.

“Well then, what a surprise.” Lance smiled and picked his gift up. “Thanks, man.”

The stingray didn’t leave.

Lance cocked his brow. “Sorry. I don’t have anything for you. Maybe next time.”

As if it understood, it turned around and returned to its family before the entire group left.

Out of nowhere, a heavy weight anchored Lance’s heart, reminding him how Keith’s last letter ended and there it was, that dreadful feeling telling him that something was wrong but he didn’t want it. Not ever. He opened the bottle and uncurled the letter. His eyes roamed the first few lines and relief escaped his lips.

_Hey there,_

_Tomorrow is better and you know why?_

_You won’t believe it but it started to snow today. It’s crazy! I’m not even prepared for this kind of “winter” but I’ll deal with it. I admit, it’s better than a blizzard or a hail storm. Man, I wish I can show it to you. Everything here is covered in white, a winter wonderland in a way. I doubt swimming in the water would be smart though. I’m not that crazy about freezing my ass off._

_What I can do is make snow angels. I know you liked them very much, I liked them too. Reminds me of our first snow day together, starting with a snowball fight no less. Honestly, Lance... You were pretty cruel, throwing one at my face and it hurt like hell. Should’ve joined the baseball team with that kind of arm but you laughed, said baseball just wasn’t your thing. That was fine with me._

_We spent all those hours playing, god. We didn’t even wear our gloves too, that was pretty stupid of us actually... Our hands were freezing by the time we were done. I was warming them in my jacket, praying my fingers didn’t snap off, but you grabbed my hands in yours and blew hot air into them. I never let go._

_We were only boys then._

_I had to stop writing to make a fire and it’s still snowing here, damn. Why don’t we try for a warmer topic? It’ll help me survive this damn night._

_Ah, did you know? We had a small house near the beach, the sounds of the seashells hanging like wind chimes. They were right outside our bedroom window. We grabbed a lot of them one day and you asked me if I knew what to do with them. I didn’t, I mean what do you do with seashells besides collecting them? You sort of gave me this look like you just couldn’t believe it and I knew I was in for a surprise._

_You taught me how to make the little holes and we put a string through them and just tied them up. It was that simple. The rest we decorated the house with, they were everywhere and they had their own little story too. There’s barely any shells left now but you know I found one today, stuck between some rocks and wood. It’s nice, some streaks of blue over it and in great condition so figured I keep it as good luck charm. Okay, okay, I’ll be honest. It reminded me of you. You’re probably rolling your eyes about it too._

_Damn… I really miss our home, there’s not much of it left but it’s still ours. We built it. We gave it life, a story, and that’s all I have left here._

_Being alone here, it’s quiet. It’s always too quiet and sometimes I’m not even sure if that’s good or bad. Does this ever happen to you? Where you hear nothing and the silence just presses you down? How do you deal with that? There are days when it eats away at you and feeds on your insides but I think about us and our adventures, how every day was something different and we did anything we wanted._

_We were kings. It made everything easier._

_I hope one day I’ll hear about your adventures, better than the ones I have now._

_Good night, Lance._

_Keith_


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys, this one is a short chapter. I feel like I just needed to write this out quickly before the idea dies in my head.
> 
> Also, I will tell you guys that in Keith’s world, something happened to Lance and maybe this chapter will answer that? Currently, Keith is communicating with the Lance from the other world. So… yeah. Love you guys for being great.

The movements of the currents were too strong, tidal waves violently crashed against the waters in a flurry of rage. The storm heightened with intensity as the sky cried out with a thunderous roar and the rains heavily poured without hesitance.

Lance’s home was already prepared to handle a storm like this but what he was most worried about was Keith’s message. Around this time, he would spot it in the sea but with this kind of weather now, he was sad to think he would miss this one.

For the entire day until nighttime, Lance stayed indoors, keeping himself busy. He tried to not think about Keith because he was sorely tempted to run out and find the bottle himself but it was suicide.

He read some books and drew in his book to pass the time. The pages sketched out his own hands and maybe Keith’s hand against him. Different designed snowflakes were placed on one corner of the page and he imagined the seashells outside the window. There was a sketch of that, more detailed and defined than anything else he did. His own collection of seashells became an inspiration for the most of the night.

When the storm finally calmed, Lance walked outside and greeted with a pleasant night. The clouds disappeared and the full moon brightly lit with the multitude of stars painted across the sky. He took a deep breath. Time to get started.

With a flashlight in hand, he took his time combing the beach but when half an hour to an hour passed, he didn’t find it. It was a bit disheartening. He swallowed, almost afraid and maybe desperation settled in his bones.

There was that possibility of Keith not writing back, maybe he had something else to do but he said he would write everyday. Anything can happen, Lance repeated it to himself. He got caught up with work or whatever he did over there, and that calmed his anxiety just a little bit. Lance wasn’t the type to give up so he continued searching for it as long as he could.

-

_Lance,_

_I remember the first time we kissed. It was unimaginable. We didn’t need words to describe what it was like. I can’t count the times we did it, you can’t put a number on it but they were unforgettable. We had each other and we were still kings._

_I gave you my heart and you gave me your endless happiness I would never thought of receiving. Sometimes, I would ask myself if this was even real or a dream. I didn’t dare to let go no matter what happened, I don’t think both of us would survive it._

_It was the best time of our lives and I wished it was longer. I wished for more opportunities, more days, and more of you. I never did asked, it was too late before we really had the chance but if I had to redo everything, I would give you this. I had it for a long time really. I’m not throwing it away but letting it go. You may think it’s terrible of me but when you have so much time on your hands, you learn to accept that this was all in the past. This was what we could’ve been but I guess it’s unfair knowing we don’t get to live that timeline._

_What you do with it is your decision. I don’t expect you to keep it._

_I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I’m sorry._

_Keith_

A gold ring sat on the bottom of the ocean floor.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know anymore :/.

Searching for Keith’s bottle proved to be an impossible task. No matter how hard Lance looked through the post-storm mess, he didn’t find a thing. It was hopeless and he felt like shit after the night. His body ached with no energy to continued on while his mind told him to rest. He did immediately as he passed out on his bed and slept until past noon. His limbs heavy like cement but he forced himself to turn upright until he faced his white ceiling, trying to imagine that yesterday didn’t happen.

He was angry at himself for not going out into the storm. He could’ve survived it if he tried and if he actually pushed himself more, maybe, just maybe he had the letter in his hand. Hating himself wasn’t the answer and no point in trying to find it again when the storm probably swept it away and destroyed all of the contents.

Today will get better. Lance thought as he pulled himself up from bed, brushing his hair lazily with one hand as he tried to smother the wild bed hair down. Because another letter was waiting for him.

But the wait became a game for him.

Lance surveyed the sea and saw nothing. The cool waters soaked his feet and he poked some pebbles with his toe before grabbing a decent sized one in his hand, flinging it into the ocean. He tried skipping some rocks and managed three bounces or four before they sank. He grew bored of it after.

All over the ground laid seashells for Lance to pick up and he even bothered to poke a small crab with a stick before it walked away annoyed. There was nothing out there and it worried him. Maybe he missed the bottle because he slept in? It can’t be. It would’ve somehow touched land and with the calmed waters, it was easy to spot since he had a feeling it would miraculously find a way to him.

Time was the answer. Just give Keith more time, that was what it’ll take. Lance turned and decided to grab a book from his house before bringing the boat into the sea. He read for the remainder of the day until the sun settled and his heart worsened by the hour.

“Do you hate me?” Lance uttered softly. The book laid forgotten on his lap. “Because I didn’t write back? Is that what you want?” He wasn’t sure what to say to Keith and writing on paper was harder for him.

Keith’s letters spoke of stories filled with emotions and feelings that Lance can’t really copy, and the man was a stranger. Lance knew nothing else about him except what he picked up from the letters. If only they meet then everything will be easier.

He waited a little longer until it was completely dark. He was tired and his stomach growled. The boat remained still and he was alone. He had enough and decided not to waste another night away but when he took the paddle, he spotted a glint from the corner of his eye. He shifted and saw the moonlight hit upon an object making its way as the waves gently rocked it forward. Lance bolted, his eyes didn’t believe what he saw. He grabbed his paddle and rowed forward until he swoop the bottle up.

His mouth stretched into a warm smile and let out an air of complete relief. The bottle felt real in his hands. Without time to waste, he retrieved the letter.

_Hey again,_

_Damn, I know I’m late but I had to take care of some things, it took me longer than I expected. I didn’t have the time or place to write but no worries, everything is fine and I’m back. You must’ve waited long, I’m really sorry about that. I hoped my last letter didn’t bothered you but I thought it would be important to understand how much he meant to me and with the ring, I guess you see why._

Lance blinked and realized the message he missed was something significant. He silently cursed and even more when he realized there was a ring involved. It didn’t take long for him to put the pieces together and the air around him suddenly turned a chilling cold.

_~~I don’t normally say these things to people, I guess opening up isn’t my strong suit but you’re different. I’m not like him, he had a way with words-god, I don’t want to hurt you or ruin anything but here I am risking everything to speak to you and who knows if there’s someone like me in your world. I mean, are you~~ _

The question left unfinished, the entire paragraph painted with harsh ink marks all over, rejecting Keith’s own words and thoughts. The way the pen left a deep and chaotic mess behind, it was upsetting. It reminded Lance of his younger sister who got mad over small things. She grabbed every marker and made them bled all the color out, their tips broken until they were useless and unusable.

_Forget it. You’re not like the people here and I feel I can trust you so please don’t think badly of me, I want you to understand. I mean, I don’t know if any of this matters to you or if I’m wasting my time..._

He gripped the material firmly. It did matter. Everything mattered. 

_No, I’m an idiot, we’ll leave it at that. It’s just… too much has happened and it’s tiring at times, trying to live another day. Whether it’s your last meal or your last breath, ha!_

_You know how many times he told me that I wasn’t an idiot or a failure? That I was something more and the world would be crying because they didn’t have me on their side?_

_~~He said I didn’t need to prove my worth and I didn’t get that. Wasn’t it all about being a somebody so society took notice of your skills? You have to be a somebody to move up, to be the best of the best or you don’t make the cut. He called bullshit and told me to shut up but who’s going to stop me now? I failed. Maybe I wanted to reach out to you because I was done with this life and I had nothing else to lose. I don’t care if the world cursed at me for doing this because it was already dying.~~ _

Another part crossed out as well, the various sharp angles and lines from an angry boy of the other world. Lance gotten the gist of the message though and he was only met with more confusion and pain.

_Say, won’t you tell me what you did with the ring? It tickles the back of my mind, you know how it is… part of human nature to be curious._

_Nah. How about I tell you of that one story? When we were kids and grew apart? Your family had to move because… Part of it was because your dad got a new job and the other, well, let’s say your area wasn’t fond of your brother’s homosexuality._

_You didn’t want to leave, you said that this was your home and leaving meant we would never see each other again. You cried a lot and I just held you until you stopped. I saw the fear in your eyes and understood because I didn’t want you to go too. You were my best friend, probably my only best friend then._

_We wrote to each other. You told me in your letters how you hated the city. How it smelled and constantly people right at your shoulders. The cars were loud, everyone was honking and everything was unbearable, even the trains too. You even complained about the friends you met. You had funny nicknames for them and they picked on you but somehow, you grown to like them. It was hard but you managed. When you left, I tried but life became dull, different, things weren’t the same anymore but when I saw your letters, they meant everything to me._

_We called a few times too. On birthdays and holidays mostly, those were fun and suddenly the letters stopped. Even your phone was disconnected. I don’t know what happened to you and I felt helpless, I didn’t know what to do. All that stupid rage got me into fights. Enough to kill someone... yeah, even messed with the wrong crowd and I fucked up but what would you have done when your best friend was gone, ripped out of your life for years?_

_Forget I said that, just forget all that. I’m not wasting any more ink on crossing things out._

_But he came back. That was all I needed._

_Hey, Lance? Can you tell me that everything is okay? That today is going to be fine and tomorrow will be better? Maybe if you say it like a prayer, I can hear your voice from here. That would be nice._

That was the end. No farewells or Keith’s name on the bottom line. It wasn’t like him. 

Unbalanced.

Several tears streamed down Lance’s face and he wiped them away with his arm. “Shit…” He already made his decision. He rowed back to the shore and headed into his room. The light turned on and the notebook quickly opened to a clean page. He started writing a quick message before he ripped it out and rolled it into the bottle he saved. 

It was enough.

He went out once more and took a deep breath. He sent a silent prayer against the glass, wishing it a safe travel and hope it was enough to give Keith the happiness he deserved and much more. Lance aimed and threw the bottle as far as he could into the water.

* * *

****

**Hey, listen to me, okay? Everything is going to be fine because I’m right here.**

**Lance**


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! So here we go with the next chapter. Just to let you know that some letters are not fully written out but they do point out the importance of statements and such, and of course time skips. We’re almost there… aaaah. If you have questions, let me know or ask me on Tumblr. I'm not much of a detailed person since I'm trying to keep it a little vague on Keith's part but I tried. 
> 
> -
> 
>  _Italics_ = Keith's letters  
>  **Bold** = Lance's letters
> 
> I wish I can like photoshop their letters with their specific hand writings and just copy and paste it into this chapter but I'm not that pro. It looks like a mess trying to go from italics to bold, mmmmm...

The next day brought a new tomorrow, an excitement just waiting for Lance. He woke up earlier than his usual time and found himself already by the shore. The comforting breeze touched his face like a quiet hello and the silent beg of the ocean asked him to join by the cool waves touching his feet. A whirlpool of anticipation thrummed in his chest and the drops of anticipation pierced through his stomach, everything crushed together made Lance unsure about everything in this very moment. 

The letter he wrote hovered in his mind with those few sentences written on paper. But was it enough for Keith? That was the only thing that mattered to him.

Lance’s boat was his companion and with another row out into the sea, he settled himself at an acceptable distance from the shore. The notebook rested in his hand while he waited for Keith’s note. It was still a bit early so he had time to kill before then, assuming it was the correct time. Another page in his book became filled with the scene of his home, the small house he built, and the background covered with quick outlines of plants and towering trees placed behind it.

Never did Lance thought he would have this kind of home to himself. In fact, he never was anybody in his past life. He had jobs that come and go, nothing worth mentioning because they never lasted long. The Lance from the other world was right. He agreed about society’s expectations and that wasn’t him. He wasn’t part of that and he escaped from that reality, making a new place for himself where he can’t be bothered.

Lance saved up some money and traveled someplace far. A quick spin of a globe and his finger pointed at his final destination. He discovered this island from a local native, said it was uninhabited and that caught his interest. No one bothered him.

The island gave him that peace he was looking for, emptied of all tragedies and failures he had carried. It made him into a new person, someone who wasn’t tied down by some string of fate or whatever they called it. He was just his own man. 

Now here he was, hoping he can make a difference in someone’s life. He never dreamt of doing so but maybe it was the right time to start a new chapter in his book.

What a better way to do so turned out to be quite the surprise. Lance was greeted with dolphins with their clicks and one jumped into the air and down, its display left him in awe. They swam closer to the boat, adding whistles into the air and around Lance’s boat. 

“Now that’s something you don’t see every day. Hey there.” Lance dipped his hand in the water as a dolphin brushed against it. “I think I’m gonna draw you guys in my little book.” With his pencil, he went ahead and sketched them in.

Once the dolphins were done playing around with Lance, they disappeared into the distance but it seemed they left him a prize, just like the stingrays, and it was worth the wait. He snagged the bottle out of the sea and with a sigh of relief, he opened it and unrolled the paper out.

Lance took note of how messy Keith’s writing was. He guessed Keith was jotting down his thoughts quicker than he expected.

-

_Shit, I thought I was dreaming when I saw it. Maybe God was playing tricks on me, I can’t believe this. What a surprise, I didn’t really expect to receive a reply from you but I did. Here you are! With that last letter… that was embarrassing but thank you, thank you, thank you. This means a lot to me. Which means you got all of my letters then? You must have. I’m so happy, I really am. I thought it was a lost cause at first but everything is OKAY. You’re here, you’re actually here._

_You were right, Lance. Today is a better one._

_Where to even start? How about you tell me about yourself? I want to know everything. Tell me your story._

The next summer’s day.

**I got all of your letters. Man, I should’ve written you back but I guess it’s better late than never, right? I’m here now and responding but damn it!!! I missed the one with the ring? It was an accident! There was a bad storm here and I tried everything, I really did but I couldn’t find it in the end. I think it’s lost… I’m sorry, please don’t hate me!**

**Eh my story? There’s not much to say. You know my name, I’m 25, and live by myself on this island. I’ve built my own place, have the sea to myself, and do some fishing. Sometimes I doodle or read, whatever floats my boat. Maybe I should send you some of my stuff next time. Wait! Can we meet? Is that possible you think? Hope it’s not weird to ask? I don’t know. ******

Today’s day was the hottest by far but calmed to a more pleasant air as the sun set. 

_Here I thought I would get pages out of you but it seems you’re not much of a letter person either. Ha ha I’m teasing, it’s fine. Anything from you makes this day a hell a lot easier to deal. I won’t hate you about the ring so don’t worry about it, it’s not your fault. It’s in a better place now, I’m sure._

_Oh cool, we’re the same age too. You sound like a simple guy, I like that. Nothing beats having a place of your own. Tell me more about that. What’s it like in your house? And go ahead and send some drawings, I want to see them._

_Did anyone ever tell you that you’re silly? That’s not weird at all… I didn’t think you would wanna meet? You surprised me. I don’t know if it’s possible but maybe? I would like to meet you too but I’d have to think about it. The complexity of science behind it has many variables and I don’t want to bore you with that. I’ll figure something out. Don’t worry about it._

**Looks like it’s my job to make your days a spectacular one! Here, I sketched some parts of the house, I’ll give you those instead. It’s nothing grand. You know what they say about a pic is worth a thousand words but like maybe 50 from these. I’ll send some more later but eh they’re not that great. Just a warning. Hmm, do you ever fish? I think I’m pretty good at it, it’s all in the wrist too and maybe luck but mostly it’s skill.**

**I’m no science geek so I guess I’ll thank you for sparing me the details. You know I sorta failed my science classes to tell you the truth. The worse was Biology and probably the only thing I picked up on is… WAIT FOR IT! You’re gonna like this. The mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell. I swear to god don’t laugh at me, that info is important! Grr I know you’re laughing because I’m totally not laughing too.**

**ANYWAYS! It’s your turn to tell me about yourself. I don’t really know who you are. What’s your world like? What do you do? You’re more of a mystery to me and from those letters, you didn’t mention much. I don’t mean to pry but...**

_My day is already wonderful. Your drawings are beautiful, they remind me of home once, brings back some pleasant memories. Seriously I didn’t know you were such an artist, I want to see more and no, I never fished but you plan on teaching me? I trust your skills are up to par. I wouldn’t mind if you caught me a fish, don’t know if you can fit it in a bottle though. That can be a bit problematic. Don’t try it._

_Sorry, you’re right! I’m laughing really hard at that comment! Oh man, I don’t know what to say but seriously?! No, I won’t be mean to you. I’m not that cruel._

_I’m sorry. It’s true though but I’m not sure what to say. I don’t have family if you were wondering. I worked a lot and I guess I’m like you now, just living my own life. It’s not easy to explain. Maybe you should see it with your own eyes when you’re here. How about it? Would you risk your life to come to this side and see what it’s all about? I gave it some thought and I have a theory but I won’t endanger your life if you don’t want to do this. I don’t know the results myself but it’s a 50/50 chance. It’s the same concept as us sending the letters but how do you feel about dropping yourself into the unknown? Are you willing to do that?_

**You really think so? I guess I’ll send you more then. I can teach you to fish and maybe share a few secrets about it, we’ll see… And I might be tempted to put a little fish in the bottle but um maybe I’ll send it in another bottle? I don’t know?**

**DID YOU SERIOUSLY THINK I WOULD SHOVE A BIG FISH IN THERE?! I’m not that crazy!**

Then Lance stopped writing. He stared at the paper and his pen tapped against the hard surface of his desk. He wasn’t sure how to process that level of information, it sounded like it came out of a sci-fi film where there wasn’t a definite answer of whether you live or die. It was more of taking that gigantic leap of faith and go from there. Plus, add some nifty CGI effects but this wasn’t fiction, this was reality.

He answered with a simple 'I don’t know'.

********

-

The following reply, Keith didn’t respond to his uncertainty so Lance assumed that was the end of that topic but the letters continued every day. No matter how short or long they were, Lance discovered a new side of Keith. Keith was more lively in his writings and his questions never seemed to end. Lance had fun and laughed at times, he can admit that. Keith was a sincere person and a bit witty at times, but still, the mysteries about him remained.

They shared some jokes and bits of stories of each other’s life. Lance even sent Keith some drawings especially the one page in his notebook of figuring out Keith’s actual face. Eventually, Lance received the same paper back but this time, Keith filled in those blanks with big eyes and obnoxious lips that looked like they came from a comic book. Creative.

_I think you helped me tapped into my artist side._

Keith circled the one particular face with a mullet and an arrow pointed to it saying 'That’s me'. Now it was Lance’s turn to fill in that mystery. One day.

Letters turned time into moments of fondness and friendship. Weeks turned to several months but they felt like a year passed, and each day was a gift.

-

_I don’t know how many times I’ve said this but time for me to be honest with you once more. I haven’t trusted anyone in a long time after him and even if I wanted to, I couldn’t because the world is full of bad guys and I don’t want to be a part of it. Escape was my only option, running away, and finding my own place. I think it’s a lonely existence and I was prepared to live with that every day knowing my heart still continued to beat. It was best not to get close to people and shit, make your own rules too. That’s what it means to live but I realized I haven’t done that at all until you, Lance. I discovered how much I missed all of this, and getting to know you, the real you, is quite the adventure so thank you for giving me that hope, for sharing, for everything. You saved me._

-

They said that love was difficult to put into words, that it was something that came from the heart. It was something you learn and grow, an experience that a person will soon understand, whether it was as simple as loving your family and friends or the kind you want to spend your life with. For Lance, love was his home. Love was being one with the sea, and most of all, love was in the letters he found himself writing every day.

**You know I won’t hate you for being honest. You can’t fault a guy for doing so considering you’ve been nothing but that. That’s what I like about you.**

_It’s pretty bold of you to ask and I admit, I like that about you as well. Alright, I’ll satisfy that brain of yours but don’t you even dare make fun of me._

_I suppose I miss waking up in the mornings, hearing the sounds of a busy kitchen and the smell of food in the air. I miss listening to his singing and thinking of falling in love again. He would say his good mornings with that stupid grin on his face and laughed as if he got caught in the act. It was something else. I loved him._

_I miss those days when it rained and he’d dragged me outside until we were both soaking wet. He just stood there with his hands out and his head tilted to the sky. He had this peaceful look on his face and when he stretched his hand out to me, I took it and we kissed. Funny thing is, I got sick after… that was a joy._

_He was vocal in everything he did, can’t really stay in one place too. Whether it was playing the guitar or dancing to his favorite song, he made sure I was part of it. I remembered the slow dancing in the living room on Christmas night, the little garden behind the house... Oh how can I forget, our little road trips with miles and miles away from home. We would blast the music to the max with the windows down and just sing our hearts out._

_But then I imagined us as kids again and everything was simple. Kids didn’t have to worry much, right? Not having that many responsibilities, I think. Oh well. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I missed ‘us’, that’s all. There, you got your answer. I’ve said enough, you must get really tired of hearing me talk about him. Come on, how about you? Is there someone in your life you’re not telling me about?_

**Tired? Never. He was lucky to have you. You became a part of his life and he loved you and you loved him. I think that’s really important so thanks for sharing all of this with me, it means a lot.**

**And nope, there’s no one. It’s only me.**

_No, I should be the one saying that so thank you._

_You ever think the possibility of an alternate me in your world somewhere? Maybe he’s waiting for you, maybe he’s your 'soulmate'._

**Soulmate? I don’t know about that… I highly doubt it. He’s not you. If he’s out there somewhere then I hope he’ll find the happiness he’s looking for.**

-

_You never asked me about him. Why is that?_

**Does it matter? Didn’t think it would be right to.**

_It doesn’t. I can tell you if you want, you only need to ask._

**No, it’s fine.**

-

Despite different worlds, they had a bond they both respected and opened up with one another but not everything, there were still mysteries left unasked. Lance didn’t want to make it uncomfortable for both of them so he remained silent. If anything, he preferred talking to Keith face to face, to see him and hear his voice for the first time. He would look forward to that.

The difficult part was getting to that point. They both wanted to see each other, Lance sensed it in their letters but they continued to dance around the subject. It was the matter of who was going to admit it first and Lance wanted this badly. The more he thought about it, the endless need to keep waiting made him a bit frustrated. Dreaded.

There was also Lance’s little crush that he had developed which he needed to address. Okay, not a little but it was more than a crush. It was the whole 'I like you like you' attraction and not the 'like you as a friend' situation, and it crushed his very soul. He couldn’t stop thinking about Keith, even made it difficult for him to sleep at night. He had to do something about it before it’ll drive him crazy, no doubt.

Was it wrong of him to fall in love with someone he hasn’t seen? To fall in love with another guy from another world? A fantasy but Lance couldn’t deny his feelings. He never thought he would, he never could get close to someone in the past. Sure, he made some 'friends' but they weren’t the kind you want to go on a date with. Men, women, it didn’t matter to Lance. He never wanted a relationship, a proper one, until this very moment.

Whatever proper meant to him.

The paper was inserted into the bottle. It was the right time, Lance figured. He flipped the bottle a few times and caught it in his hand without dropping it.

“Here goes nothing,” He sweetly smiled and threw the bottle into the water, letting it drift into the distance. His eyes closed and he took a deep breath. He was sure of everything.

**I want to see you. Tell me how to do it.**


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here we go with the next chapter. Just buckle your seat belt and enjoy the ride.

_No, you can’t!_

**What do you mean no?! Don’t tell me you don’t want this either!**

_It’s not about what I want! It’s about you and crossing a dangerous line! There are consequences and I don’t think any of us are willing to go through that._

**I know we didn’t talk much about it, kind of avoided the subject really but I’ve been thinking. A lot, okay. I’m serious about this. DEAD SERIOUS. If I was joking then ha ha ha but I’m not. It’s not funny at all and I want to see you, I’ll swim out there if I have to. I got a boat too.**

_DON’T BE STUPID! You go out there and you’ll never come home! I won’t let you do this to yourself and that’s final._

**It’s my decision. You’re worried, I get that and that’s okay but believe me, I promise that everything is going to be fine. The bottles made it back without a scratch so… why the hell not? Don’t you trust me?**

_Lance, of course I do but it’s a very complicated matter. I don’t know what happens when a human crosses over, it’s like entering a black hole. Nothing else matters because you’d get killed in the process. Please don’t talk about this anymore._

**Fine, then I won’t.**

Lance ended with that. Mostly because he didn’t want to argue with Keith anymore, but he didn’t understand why Keith refused to go through it. They both wanted it, he was so sure of it. If there was a chance of staying alive then why Keith wouldn’t simply say ‘yes’? And if Lance could swim out there and find this portal of some sort then it was settled, but a part of him locked his feet down. His inner voice told him it wasn’t a good idea and he’ll die if he ventured out. 

Take a break, it said again, and Lance did.

Lance didn’t receive another letter the following day, and assumed Keith needed some time. He went back to his old lifestyle as if it never changed, but he realized he was so used to Keith being in his life that everything else felt wrong. It was disturbing. He lost his patience trying to fish and didn’t bother sketching in his book, he had no motivation to do anything because everything else became a bore, but he still waited for the bottles to come. 

None came. It was his fault, he discovered.

After the third day, Lance went snorkeling. He swam passed colorful arrays of tropical fish and turtles. The seabed below him covered in a valley of coral reefs, vibrant and alive with the sunlight hitting against them. He wondered if Keith ever had the chance to see what was down here, to view a world unlike any other. If only. Maybe one day if it was a possibility.

The sudden twinkle caught his attention in the sands as he passed another set of exotic corals. He quickly made his way through and swept the sand away until he discovered a golden ring. Without question, he grabbed it and went back for air.

By the time Lance went back to the house and dried himself off, he grabbed the box from under his bed and opened the lid. It was full of letters, all neatly stacked with a conch over it as paperweight. He raised the ring into the light and noticed a small engraving alongside the inner band.

It read:

‘Forever and a day’

****____ ** **

-

When the week was over, Lance hated the silence even more. Tired of waiting in his boat and the hours of looking forward to a bottle that never came. Even when it rained, it heavily poured and the waters told him not to come, but when the sun came out as he looked out into the distance, he felt a desperate yearning for that connection again.

Lance prepared a letter. He didn’t mean to end it such a way, Keith probably thought he was mad at him but he wasn’t. He can never be mad except at himself, for being selfish and a little stubborn. 

**I’m fucking sorry, I’m that asshole and it’s okay if you think so too. It’s my fault, I ruined everything, you have every right to hate me. I was frustrated and didn’t think about your feelings. God I promise I won’t jump in the waters or do anything crazy, just please write back to me. I miss this.**

The next day, Lance found a reply waiting for him and quickly grabbed the paper.

_I can’t hate you, I’m not mad but I admit I was upset, I think we both were. You should be the one hating me, I said no but why bother lying to myself... I realized these past days, the hardest part was convincing myself that I shouldn’t want this. That for us to meet would be a terrible idea and nothing good would come out of it. Writing to you was enough, I enjoyed that a lot, to feel normal again, but it wasn’t enough._

_Ha ha ha._

_I want to see you too but is it wrong of me to think that I can move on from this? It is really okay?_

**YOU KNOW FUCK WORDS I’M GOING TO TRY! Keith, listen to me. Not everything is black and white, yeah? It’s not right or wrong but if this is something you truly want then go for it. It’s okay, seriously. Sometimes we do crazy things for the people we… like, right?? And ILIKEYOU so…**

**I’M NOT SURE but this might not be my place to say but I think he would’ve wanted this for you, for you to be happy. To not be alone in this world and live. I already made my choice and whatever happens, happens. We’ll go from there. I don’t have much to lose, I’m just following my heart and here we are waiting to cross it.**

**What does your heart say?**

_You’re unbelievable and you know... I L I K E Y O U TOO. I think you’re right, he would’ve wanted that, it’s so ‘him’ really. Thank you, thank you… If you can see me right now, I’m a mess and no I’m not crying but I can’t believe you. Before I say yes, I wish I could throw a fucking bottle at your head right now or punch your face but it won’t change your mind. Once you set your sight on something, you’re never going to give it up._

_Fine, my heart says we’ll do it so pay attention. We’ll meet in four days, how about that? You’re going to need your boat. I’ve written instructions on another sheet for you, follow them and we’ll go from there. It’s still cold over here so prepare for a dramatic weather change, summer boy. I’ll provide you some clothes so don’t bring anything with you, just in case. I don’t know what effects it’ll have but I rather be safe than sorry._

_I guess I’ll see you soon. I’ll be waiting._

The letter ended with a smiley face. Lance held the paper to his chest. He was going to see him, it was finally happening.

-

Four days felt a long time and even longer when Lance couldn’t sit down and wait. They both agreed not to write since Keith had to go and prepare for his arrival so Lance spent his days reading and dreaming.

But when he awoke from his dreams during the middle of the night, he couldn’t go back to sleep. Instead, he walked outside and sat along the steps of his front porch, admiring the stars out with a cup of hot chocolate. He let himself drift away.

-

It was time.

Lance took the boat out into sea, thankful for a clear day without the rough waters and rowed toward the specific distance where Keith told him. As soon as he was at the exact point away from the island, he spotted a small whirlpool in front. The waters swirled and into the dark depths of the unknown. He swallowed nervously and gripped his paddle, careful not to steer the boat into the mouth. 

_Once you see it, you know what I mean. Take a deep breath and jump. Good luck. I’ll be right here waiting for your arrival._

He gripped the edge of his boat, his knuckles hardened to white. He quickly downed the small ball of fear riding up his throat. He closed his eyes and quietly count to ten, breathe in and out, he told himself. Everything was going to be okay. There was no turning back but maybe he should’ve told Keith that he was afraid of not coming out alive. He opened his eyes.

No.

His strength pushed him forward. He was a fighter, he was going to survive this.

“Here goes nothing,” Lance dived into the water and into the vortex. 

His body swirled in the cyclone, into the darkness he went while the sunlight slowly faded from view. A sudden pressure hit him like a punch in his gut, air bubbles rose and water flowed right in. Lance panicked, trying to swim back up, his arms flailing wildly but he only sunk further down. He struggled and struggled, his eyes flickered and his head a static mess. He wasn’t sure anymore and silently laughed. Keith—

The pain disappeared and life flowed through his veins once more. He opened his eyes, more alert and finding the ability to breathe underwater but it wasn’t water at all. What he saw wasn’t the ocean itself but himself falling toward a singularity of light. No definite sound but a humming reverberated in his ears. Perhaps it was the universe speaking to him, or a means of calming a steady heart. It didn’t matter, there was only one path he strived for.

The intensity of that humming grew but it evolved into a multiple of sounds like shrill cries of an animal. He looked around and saw he was surrounded by a vast wall of the sea but it was haunting and murky, and only a glimmer of shadows circled around. Some as large as a whale, small like a slippery eel but distorted. Only this boundary between them meant safety.

SWIM.

Fuck that. Lance didn’t want to know and reached out, hoping to touch the warm light enveloping his hand and arm, but a force pulled him forward, sucking him in. He screamed and blinded by the intense white glow.

The sudden cold engulfed his entire frame. Raw. Chilly. Wet.

He cried out of the water, coughing and inhaling air back into his lungs.

“Lance!”

He turned at the voice, finding a hand stretched out toward him and he swam over to grab it. It was warm. Hands helped him into the boat and a large blanket wrapped around his body. He held onto it, shivering but grateful for the cover.

“Shit, I’m sorry. You’re gonna catch a cold like this and that’s not gonna—What?” The tender voice asked, hands stopped from drying Lance’s hair.

Lance looked up in awe, studying the man’s face, finding cheeks a bit flushed from the weather and a set of eyes that made his chest thrummed. This was Keith and he was right here. 

“H-Hey there,” Lance tried to smile before he leaned in, wrapping his arms around Keith’s body as he ignored the sudden chill surrounding his arms. He inhaled the pleasant scent of hickory and sea-salt, reminding him a piece of home. “It’s you, oh god. I made it, I actually made it. I can’t believe it… Keith.”

“Lance,” Keith’s warmth flowed right through Lance’s ears. “You did. I’m so glad you’re here, you’re okay now, you did well. It all worked out in the end, huh?” He returned the hug, his fingers gently brushed through the brown hair, and quickly placed the blanket over Lance again.

“I felt like I died,” Lance grimaced at the familiar pain but Keith’s hand felt comforting. “like I drowned but then…” a tired sigh. “I kinda don’t want to deal with that again.”

“You won’t have to,” Keith said firmly, “not anymore.” He grabbed a sports bag behind him and unzipped it to find warm clothes inside. “We’ll talk more but first, we have to head back. It’s getting late and I need you to put on these clothes for me. Can you do that?” 

Lance nodded and started rummaging through the bag. Sweater, pair of jeans, gloves, heavy jacket, and boots. Keith had everything set for him. “Thanks, man,” he let the blanket slid around him and started to remove his top but paused, noticing Keith was staring at him. “Uh…”

Keith raised a brow. “What is it?”

“N-Nothing!” Lance played it off and waited.

“Oh,” Keith realized, “didn’t know you were a little shy.”

“Shut up, ya turd!” Lance huffed and turned around, hearing the surprise laugh from Keith. He removed his wet shirt before grabbing a navy blue sweater from the bag. It fit him well, surprisingly. The pants were next and Lance turned around, giving him a look which Keith automatically rolled his eyes and gave him the needed privacy.

When Lance finished tying his boots, Keith rowed the boat back to shore. Behind Keith, the scenery struck him in complete horror and confusion. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. 

“What the hell happened?” 

The beach was corrupted with charcoal scorched marks that left uneven ruins like small craters and cracks that split the sands. The shacks and similar buildings already crumbled and laid to waste. As they got closer, Lance found the sea devoid of life. Dead fish and other sea creatures floated on top of the surface made him want to throw up. A decayed whale laid departed and lost down the shoreline, flocks of birds huddled around it for meat. Behind it all were the city’s skyscrapers. As if something struck them down and the desolation was all it left behind. Faded grays and ashes, nothing felt alive. A billboard toppled over, its words ‘A Brighter Future Is Waiting For Us’ was brushed in a white ‘X’.

All around, the snow came down gently and covered the areas of a peaceful wintery scene but it was a lie. Something happened to this world and judging from Keith’s face, he saw an attempt of a smile but his eyes spoke despair and his lips spelt out anguish. Lance felt it deeply. He could hear the words hanging in the air. 

‘This is my world. This is the life I live.’

He realized the letters, how Keith wanted to know more about his world than having him speak about his own, a world that was dead. A world where survival was the only way to live. Those little hints he left, he never noticed it but now it made sense.

“Why did this happen… Keith, why, why, why—” Lance hitched his breath, unable to comprehend the tragedy that has fallen. Keith didn’t deserve this. He felt hands over his face and he saw Keith staring back at him.

“I know it’s unfair, but there are some good things left in this world,” Keith tilted his forehead against Lance’s and whispered soothingly. “I’m here with you. It’s not all bad, right?”

Lance tempted to look behind Keith.

“Hey, eyes on me. Listen, you took a huge risk to come here and you did something no one else dared to do. In the end, you found me. See? Not too bad, yeah?”

“No, it’s… It’s not,” Lance replied quietly, couldn’t hope to hide the grin escaping.

Keith smiled, never taking his eyes off of him. His fingers strayed and tugged some of Lance’s hair behind his ear. “Good. I promise I’ll explain everything to you once we’re back at my place. Just take a deep breath, okay? We’re almost there.”

“Okay.” Lance did his best and breathed. 

Once the boat stopped and they both climbed out, Lance spotted Keith reaching into his jacket. He froze at the sight of a handgun.

“Keith?”

“Here,” Keith handed the weapon to Lance, “just in case.”

“Wait—I never touched a gun in my life!” Lance tried to give it back to him, but Keith shook his head.

“Just point, aim, and pull the trigger.”

Lance frowned. “I can’t do that!”

“The area should be fine but I feel better knowing you have something to protect yourself with. You don’t have to shoot anything but just in case, okay? Sorry but it’s only for this night.” Keith removed a secondary gun from and checked for bullets. “I prefer knives and such but tonight was important so I figured I’d be more prepared.”

“I can see that,” Lance swallowed.

“I prefer not to attract any attention so if we do spot them, best to stay hidden. No guns, no fighting. C’mon, we should get moving.”

Lance eyed at the weapon in his hand, studying the weight. He bit his bottom lip, doubting about himself. How many times Keith pointed a gun and killed? 

“I didn’t kill people if that’s what you’re thinking,” Keith answered as if he read Lance’s mind.

“No, it’s not that…”

“It’s alright, I would’ve thought the same too,” Keith looked at his own gun. “It’s not us we should be worried about but them,” he took a gander at his surroundings, the silence was welcomed.

“Uh, who’s them?”

“The Galra,” Keith steadied, his voice enriched with venom,“they’re the reason for all of this.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there you have it! Lance made it across and Keith lives in a post-apocalyptic world. I bet some of you had a feeling it was... :D! If you’re wondering about other characters appearing, probably not…??? Because it’s so heavily focused on Keith/Lance and Keith’s world is quite lonely, almost to the point of thinking you’re the only one left in the world. Honestly.
> 
> Also, when both of them said I L I K E Y O U, they totally meant it in a bro sort of way while Lance still has his 'i like like you feels'. And Keith, well… it’s complicated, I guess.
> 
>  _Send help._  
> 
> Looking forward to your thoughts and comments :')


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay guys, I think this is the longest chapter I ever written and that is saying something because I can never write 4k words so I pray you enjoy this chapter and it'll help answer some things? *prayer emoji* ;^;
> 
> Here are some songs that helped me write this chapter. Sets the mood, y'know?
> 
> [Florence + The Machine - Long & Lost](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dl9BqqXaMnE)  
> [Tep No - Safe Dream](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nOnrDAjdr7s)

“Gal… ra? I never heard of them,” Lance sadly admitted. The word felt weird on his tongue. 

“Oh. I guess you can say we got along with them quite well in the beginning. Humans and the Galra coexisting. Crazy, right? It’s nice to know we’re not the only ones living in this galaxy,” Keith ended with brutal sarcasm.

“Can’t trust outsiders.”

“Exactly. They came in peace and wanted to learn about us. Even offered to share their knowledge in technology and medicine, the whole let’s be friends, and it almost worked. Looked what happened. They took everything from us. Sadistic assholes who kill only for pleasure, fucking incredible.” Keith hissed between his teeth, clearly filled with anger.

They continued to move across the mix of sand and snow, their boots leaving a soft crunch as they walked. The night air was freezing and Lance really wished for summer temperatures again.

“When you said you didn’t kill people, you meant…”

“I killed those ugly bastards, no way in hell I was letting them win.”

-

Lance turned his head and heard a distant crash. He tighten his grip over the weapon in his hand and expected something to attack them. “What was that? An enemy?”

Keith stopped and looked at where Lance was staring. Another similar sound happened again. “Must’ve been another building collapse. Weak structure and all.”

“So no Galra then?”

“No,” Keith answered and continued on.

Once they were off the beach, they traveled down the pathway of what was left of the boardwalk. Lance noticed the small stores, empty and a mess, the dried blood stained the walkway as they ventured down. Shattered glass littered the place and doors completely ripped off from its hinges, even the insides, he saw empty shelves and trails of paper and books forgotten. Keith spoke quietly as he explained some facts about the area.

The Lion’s Den was a well known beach throughout Altea, a popular spot for all kinds of people to come and hang. The sweet waves, a row of endless eateries down a single path, and constant entertainment events for the mass to enjoy. Festivals and live bands rallied the place with life all through the night. Memories were made and the people always came back for more.

But you couldn’t forget the locals and their share of fun such as Mr. and Mrs. Hendrick’s ice cream shop with her husband giving an extra scoop of ice cream to the kids in secret. There was Silvia’s burgers and shakes, those were to die for, and the one store Keith was fond of was the souvenir shop runned by Janice and her granddaughter, Olivia. Olivia was a sweet child and very smart for someone her age, she might try to strike a bargain with you if she liked you well enough. Harmless fun.

Everyone was unique in their own way.

“But—” Keith halted, his arm out signaling Lance to stop. “Hold on.”

“What? Why are we stopping?” Lance gave a look-see and saw nothing out of place. The last of the snow fell, melted against his dark skin and the sudden cold front tickled his face.

Keith’s breath was noticeable in the cold air, but the wait was unsettling. He eyed at the sky and swiveled toward an incoming noise.

“Keith?” But Keith tugged on his wrist and hurried inside an abandoned store. He brought him to his side behind the counter and ducked.

“Shit, dude! What’s going on?” Lance stared in confusion and jerked his head. A sudden yelp escaped him when Keith pushed his head down, using the counter as coverage.

“Quiet, we got company.” Keith pointed up.

The sounds became louder like a stirring buzz. Lance didn’t like what he was hearing and he was pretty sure he didn’t care what it looked like. It was simple, he wanted it to go away.

“It’s a scouting drone. Marks any moving targets from the air before alerting the soldiers to come in for extraction,” Keith uttered. He gave Lance the ‘ssh’ motion and waited, his back against the empty compartments. Lance didn’t stir and bent his legs against his chest with his arms secured around them.

It drew in closer, the buzzing noise was louder and foreboding. Lance shut his eyes, silently praying for it to leave. Go away. Go away. Go away. He repeated it like a mantra. His heart beat rapidly and the sinking ominous feeling plagued his entire body, running through his body and down to the very tips of his toes. Keith’s hand instantly curled around his own, offering some form of comfort and reassurance. He tried to focus on that, the warmth of each individual finger on his skin instead of the _bip bip_ sound coming from the machine.

Not for long, the whirring of its engine disappeared. Lance relieved a long sigh as he opened his eyes. “Oh god. I thought, uh, you said this area was fine?”

“Yeah, that’s what I thought too. I haven’t seen them here for a while until now,” Keith said disapprovingly and stood.

“I hope it’s the last time we see it.”

“Bet on that.” Keith stuck his head out to check if the coast was clear. “It’s gone now so let’s keep moving. My place is at the end of this area.”

Lance followed behind, still itching for more answers that he wanted to hear. He needed to know not just about the Galra but about Keith, how it all started, and maybe he would have the courage to tell him how he really felt. Someday.

Love was difficult and he had no one to tell that to except to keep it bottled inside. He wasn’t prepared and no matter how many times he asked himself whether it was okay to fall in love with someone you haven’t met, well, now he can’t help but imagine loving Keith in his own way. As odd as it may sound, but this world wasn’t nice, there was no way of knowing if Keith would even accept him.

He thought about the letters instead.

-

“Here we are. Home sweet home,” Keith announced when they arrived.

The small wooden house had its own share of misfortune, but the words “McClain’s Surf Shop” painted over the top in a vibrant pop-out sort of font and color, probably the only thing left that was considered lively.

“It was his dad’s shop before he decided giving ownership to him. His family made custom surfboards by hand and a lot of newcomers stop by for one. I don’t know much about it but it’s pretty amazing when you see it in action.”

“Whoa, by hand? I would kill to see that,” Lance exclaimed.

“He would’ve liked the attention.” Keith lifted the loose board blocking the entrance and signaled for Lance to head in first.

Before Lance stepped inside, he faced Keith for a moment. “You know, I don’t mind if you say his name or give him a nickname if you wanted to. Figured it’d be easier instead of saying ‘him’ all the time.” He added and assumed Keith didn’t want to confuse the two, it was a delicate matter, after all. Two Lances but one wasn’t here. Every time Keith spoke of his other, Lance could hear the adoration within every word said. It didn’t annoy him, just wanted Keith not to feel awkward about it.

“Ah. Yeah, I guess that would be easier, huh?” Keith looked away somewhat. Lance took it as him agreeing before ducking his head under the board and into the empty shop.

There wasn’t much to see. It seemed everything was cleared out and some old equipment stashed away in a corner, probably Keith cleaning the place up but Lance imagined it during the busy summer days. Lance seeing his twin welcoming newcomers and old with such enthusiasm and energy. The kids would be in awe, probably begging their parents to buy something, tugging on their pants for a plush toy or the adults admiring the family work, asking a few questions here and there.

Lance then caught the sight of a board hung on a wall in front. A white longboard with triple blue stripes down the middle with a small outline of a dolphin right on its tail.

_They were his favorite animals._

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Keith appeared next to Lance and removed the handgun from his grip.

Lance felt an immense weight disappeared and hummed in response. “He made it, didn’t he?”

“Yeah, Blue was pretty proud of it. It was his first one too.” Keith passed and went through the back door.

When he opened it, Lance glanced inside, discovering a small home like an apartment he used to have but half of the place had fallen, the roof fell into a heap of rubble. On the floor, he noticed the small seashells in a disarray, broken in pieces. A creamy white sofa with a light pink floral patterns stayed in place, but there wasn’t much he can make out. The room felt too empty.

“Blue wanted to be close to home. _Literally_. So his family agreed to help him make all of this. After that, well, it all went from there. Careful not to touch the boards, can’t risk having the whole roof cave in on us.” Keith walked through the remains of the living room, the open air above brushed against their faces.

“Curious. Why Blue?”

“It was his code name when we were in school. I was Red, of course. We called each other that when we passed notes.”

“And purple happened.” Lance blurted out.

Keith almost tripped but smiled. “It did, didn’t it?”

They went through another door passed the furniture but this time, it lead to a basement. Keith took his flashlight out and turned it on. He pointed to reveal the staircase and headed down the steps while Lance followed behind.

“This entire section wasn’t here so the family had to call in some help to make this. It was originally a storage room but now I use it as a shelter of sorts. It’s not much but welcome to my humble abode, I guess.” Keith turned on the wall switch and the room lit up. Lance saw a ladder and boxes all huddled together with a built-in shelves drilled into the wall on his left. Many canned goods stacked on them while on the right had a mattress laid out, some bags packed to one corner, and a desk full of books and papers. A map pinned on a board against the gray wall. He saw more weapons laid out and boxes of ammo piled on top of another.

“As I said, it’s not much.”

“You’re kidding, right? It’s a lot, I mean… you’re really prepared. Is there anything you don’t have?” Lance’s curiosity took him to a wooden box next to the canned fruit and opened to find beef jerky and condiments stashed inside.

“Marshmallows.”

“Wh—what?” Lance closed the top. “Wait, seriously? Did you just say marshmallows?” 

Keith shrugged. “Hey, a guy gets cravings, okay. I’d be lucky to even find a bag. At least I got some hot cocoa stashed somewhere.” He returned his weapons on his desk and tossed the bag against the wall along with the other ones. His hat placed over the chair and he ran his fingers through his messy hair. “Oh, are you hungry? I assure you I got the finest cans of beans to satisfy you. It’s home-style too.”

“Finest, you say? Well, we’ll see about that but nah, I’m good for now.”

“Okay, well,” Keith took a seat on his mattress and offered a spot next to him. “If you want, I’m willing to answer any questions or we can wait tomorrow since it’s a bit late.”

“Hell no, my body thinks it’s still daytime so I doubt I can sleep even if I tried,” Lance walked over and sat on the cushioned surface before taking one more look around the room. Then he turned his attention to Keith, with their proximity and light hovering above them, he noticed how tired Keith really was. The lack of sleep, the stress, whatever he had been through, and taking him back to his safe place, Lance had no way of repaying.

“Thanks, Keith,” Lance honestly said.

“Hm? For what?”

“For…” _Everything_. “Making this happen. To see you…” Lance scratched his cheek with a finger and eyed at Keith’s hands instead while his own neck rose in temperature.

Keith squeezed Lance’s shoulder, “Yeah.”

Lance saw the slight happiness and he too felt the same. “So, uh, isn’t it past your bedtime?”

“No? Please,” Keith waved his hand nonchalantly. “I don’t sleep much.”

“Alright, so I guess we’re not sleeping tonight,” Lance encouraged and rubbed his hands together. “Tell me about yourself and don’t leave any details! And how did you find me too, that’s also really important.”

“You really want to know.” Keith pressed.

“Well duh! You’ve been keeping everything to yourself in your letters and I’m sort of dying over here. Can’t keep me in the dark for long!” Lance gave a small pout and crossed his arms, his eyes lowered as well. The expectation was high.

“Oh yeah that’s very mature,” Keith rolled his eyes and let out some air. “I know that but are you sure you’re ready to hear it?”

“One hundred percent.”

“It’s nothing interesting, just a warning.”

“I don’t care, I want to know.”

“Fine. We’ll start from the beginning then.”

-

Rewind.

Within the city of Altea was the Shirogane Center of Advanced Science, a research facility designed to focus on innovation and revolutionizing care to the population.

Their slogan: To create a future, we start improving for a better tomorrow.

Something of that nature.

Medicine was their main study, but with Dr. Shirogane as the newest leader, his interest lied in the field of prosthetic. The center also had another agenda. A private underground was built to study the unknowns that had appeared around the world. These mysteries contained strange readings, unexplained how they appeared but when they did, Dr. Shirogane contacted the head member of the Holt Family. Their children, Pidge and Matt, were asked to look into the matter.

The two decided to build a team to go into the field and investigate these anomalies. Keith was surprisingly chosen when he received news of it one day, not sure how he was picked considering he wasn’t known to be someone famous, or his name out in publications. He was just merely a physics teacher before agreeing to work on the new project. It didn’t matter to him, he was given a chance to do something differently so he took it without question.

These mysterious readings that the Holt family discovered gave off high energy level, and Keith was given the mission to study ΩX where he found Lance, using a device that was invented by the S.C.A.S with the help of Galra tech.

Using the device managed to stabilize the energy in a way that allowed the portal to connect to the other side. ΩX connected to Lance’s world. The machine was able to make out a hazy image of the other size, enough to discover another Lance there. The real question was how long these portals will remain open but that remained inconclusive.

-

“When I saw you, I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t think it was possible to link to an alternate universe. If we had more time, we could’ve done more tests but when the Galra attacked, everything went downhill from there. We weren’t prepared for what was to come.”

Keith stopped and took a breather.

Lance took his time to process the information. It made sense to him but still quite a shocker. The possibility of even meeting was so low and to cross to another universe safely felt impossible. He survived it and still in one piece. Memories of diving into the water and getting sucked in, those were unpleasant.

“It was hard, wasn’t it?” Keith’s voice stirred him from his thoughts. “I don’t know what happened to you over there but what you experienced tells me that you’re a survivor like me. Strong and quite determined, you never gave up.”

Keith was right, but Lance wished he had the power to turn back time, to stop this unfortunate timeline but it was too late because no matter what, he couldn’t do anything to change it.

“How long has it been since the Galra did all this?”

“It’s been two years, and several months ago, that is when I started writing to you. I figured I tried getting something through the portal, hoping my letter would reach you. Waiting felt like forever.”

“Well… I’m glad you didn’t wait. And where is everyone else? You can’t be the only one left.”

“I don’t know but I made my way around. I haven’t seen anyone for a while but if I did, I wouldn’t be sure to trust them,” Keith said, noticing the lingering silent ‘why’. “They kidnapped us and forced us to become their soldiers. They were brainwashed in a sense…” He deeply exhaled. “I knew someone—”

“Was it _him_?”

“No,” Keith replied. “It was Dr. Shirogane but everyone called him ‘Shiro’ for short.” He saw the sudden realization and nodded. “He was a good guy really, cared about everyone but the last time I saw him, well...”

Lance’s shoulders fell. It couldn’t be.

“I’m sorry,” Keith placed a hand over Lance’s shoulder. “Maybe we should save the rest of the stories tomorrow.”

“No, no,” Lance looked up. He still wanted to know more and more. “Keep going. It’s fine, _I’m_ _fine_.”

“Shiro became a part of them, I remembered seeing his hand glowed and killed a man without thinking. When he saw me, he didn’t notice me, it was like staring at a completely different person. I wasn’t going to kill him, I couldn’t.”

The pace in Keith’s voice quicken, a mixture of anguish and lost. “I tried, Lance. I tried so hard but he wouldn’t snap out of it so I ran. I escaped somehow, thinking he would hunt me down but he didn’t. Maybe it was his last wish, whatever humanity was left in him... I don’t know. I haven’t seen him since.”

“I’m really sorry,” Lance leaned until their shoulders brushed against each other, enough for Keith to press back. “I wish the Galra didn’t do this to you. To anyone.”

“Me too.”

“Then can I ask you this one question?”

“Yeah, go ahead. I’m not stopping you.”

“What happened to Blue?”

Lance noticed the frigid pause in Keith, like a robot that shut down. The color of his face turned pale and not because of the light, but dread hovered over him. Maybe it wasn’t a good idea to ask him that. It was none of this business, right? Lance was prying in an territory he shouldn’t touch, he should be asking questions about the Galra instead.

“Never mind, how about—”

“It’s okay, I didn’t think you really wanted to know? I mean, I know I’ve mentioned him a lot but how interested you were, well… I guess you really are.”

“If you’re not cool with it, we can stop. Don’t wanna force you, y’know?”

“You deserve an answer, I won’t hide that from you.”

“If you’re really sure.”

- 

_Name: Lance McClain._

_Nickname: Blue_

_Age: 25_

_Current status: Deceased_

His death wasn’t what Keith expected. It was ripped away from him, a chance he no longer had. He wished for more opportunities, more days, and more of him. He wanted a redo, the world remained cruel and unfair.

It was on that day when the Galra made their move. The ground shook like an earthquake, everyone at the facility went on high alert. The alarms blared throughout the building and employees ran back and forth with haste. Keith had no idea what was happening and immediately thought of Lance.

He ran outside and saw the devastation surrounding the entire city. People screaming everywhere as they ran, buildings that were once symbols started to fall, and a large explosion erupted into a cloud of ashy smoke and flames in the distance.

_Lance._

He didn’t go anywhere else but to him. He got onto his motorcycle and sped down the streets, not even caring how fast he went. His side mirror, he saw the alien ships appeared from the sky, firing its lasers and burning the area with no hesitation. They had waited for this moment.

When he reached the beach, he saw soldiers killing familiar faces he has thought of as friends, and men and women were dragged into a container before they were brought inside a transportation ship. He couldn’t save them, he couldn’t do anything. He had no weapons on him, only thing he can do was run and get to Lance.

By the time he arrived. His home was—

“Stop,” Lance held Keith’s wrist and squeezed, noticing the tears on Keith’s face, “You don’t have to do this.” And Lance was trying his best to hold his own pain. He saw how tough it was, the grief stricken all over and the sadness which didn’t belong. He understood losing someone close to you. His older brother was very ill a year back. The doctor said it was only a matter of time and it was best to stay with him until the end. He was there when it happen and since then, he hated hospitals.

Keith cursed at himself, pulling away from Lance and wiped his eyes with the palm of his hand. “I need to do this, okay? It needs to be said.”

He knew something was very wrong when he went inside. The stands and shelves were knocked over, surfboards of different sizes snapped in half, and damaged glass all over. Burnt marks the size of bullet holes desecrated the walls. He carefully made his way through the mess and opened the door, looking at the floor stained with a trail of crimson that led to _him_.

“I didn’t know how long I held him in my arms and said his name over and over. I couldn’t protect him. I was too late,” Keith stood. “I lost him, grieved, and that was it... I’ve hid here until it died down. Eventually, I buried his body outside facing the sea, I think it was for the best, you know... he always loved the ocean.” A pause. “So there you have it, that’s my story.” He leaned against the edge of the desk and his palms rested on the surface.

There was more to it. The crinkle on Keith’s forehead and that noticeable thin line of his lips, something told Lance there was more to it but of a different kind.

Keith was hiding something.

“What we had was good, I was happy with him. The days we had together, they were unforgettable. Life went on without him. I had to try and move on...”

“And you reached out to me and I’m here now.”

“Yes.”

“It’s really unfair,” Lance sat up and walked around the room. He needed to distract himself, staring at the equipment all neatly placed under the cans: rope, batteries, flashlight, candles and matches, and a first-aid kit. “It’s _unfair_.”

“You’re right and it’s the Galra’s fault, they’re the ones who destroyed this world. There’s no way of fighting them, it’s over, this is the end. _My end,_ ” Keith added, a finality in his voice. It threw Lance’s off completely.

“You don’t know that—”

“I do know it.”

“So you’ve given up?”

“Lance, go back to your own world.”

He stared at Keith, truly looked at him as if he grown a few heads. He made his way over, his boots stomped against the pavement until he confronted Keith face to face. His hands balled into a fist at his side. “What’re you saying?”

“Yeah, I guess it’s my turn to be selfish,” Keith crossed his arms and stood resolute, meeting Lance’s eyes. The deep shade of violet ruined him. “Go home. Your wish came true so now it’s time to say goodbye.”

It was unbearable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the heavy explanation and all the bs you had to go through. I looked over this so many times to make sure it was correct but aaaah… I can’t stress over it, it’s killing me. Keith makes everything difficult and man, I don’t know... If anything confused you, ask me a question and I’ll do my best to answer!
> 
> Looking forward to what you think so far! :)


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯

“No, no. You can’t tell me to go back when I just got here!” Lance couldn’t believe it, the frustration creeping in as it counted down to zero until he was ready to explode, but no, this wasn’t the time to get mad. He had to play it cool, be smart about this. “I’m not going back,” he stood his ground, and knew Keith was going to fight him on this but he wasn’t going to let him win. 

“Don’t be stupid,” Keith responded and gestured to the room they were in. “Do you think you can really live like this? How long before all of this is gone? Food, water, shelter. It doesn’t suit you, you don’t belong here. I wouldn’t wish this on you, not on anyone.”

“And you wanted me here, you said that yourself,” Lance pointed at him accusingly, “we both wanted the same thing and here we are. Aren’t you at least happy with that?”

“I did and I am. Shit, I won’t lie about that but you don’t understand.”

“Then explain it to me,” Lance crossed his arms and sneered, “make me understand. We have all night.”

“I—Don’t make this complicated for both of us.”

“Are you kidding me? I’m not doing anything. I just want answers,” Lance retorted without falter.

“I gave you answers before. What more do you want?”

“What you’re saying to me right now is bullshit!”

“Because it’s _complicated_!” Keith seethed through his teeth.

“Then un-complicate it!” Lance yelled, throwing his hands up in disbelief. Not just the frustration stabbing him repeatedly, but the level of annoyance was part of the two for one deal. “You’re making this harder than it should be.”

Keith glared, the intensity in those eyes were like a raging fire, burning. “The Galra did all of this and took everything. Why would you want to stay? There’s nothing for you here. _Nothing_. Go back to your home, go back to your island where the sun still shines and the ocean still lives. You have family there, someone is bound to miss you. Don’t make me take that away from you.”

Family? What did Keith knew about his family? Barely. He wouldn’t understand. Lance had nobody and no one would ever miss him. What waited for him was his home that he built. The life he created, he can do whatever he wanted and no one had to tell him differently. This time, he wasn’t going to let Keith stop him.

“Come with me.”

“ _What_?”

Lance reached for Keith’s hand and held it as if he was ready to take him away, make that grand escape and fly off. “You heard me. Come with me to my world.”

“Are you insane?” Keith snatched his hand back and passed Lance to get some room. He was about to head up the stairwell, giving one last stare but not without the familiar tortured look Lance seemed to memorized. “That’s a dumb idea.”

“What’s the matter? It’ll be fine, right? It’s just like how I did it—”

“I’m not going with you and that’s the end of it. Don’t ask me that again,” Keith responded and even shushed Lance when he tried to open his mouth the second time, “I don’t want to hear it."

The timer reached zero.

“I can’t believe you... You—You asshole!” Lance gave up and stormed over until he had Keith backed against the basement wall, his face merely inches away between them and hands roughly snagged the fronts of Keith’s jacket, “Then what were those letters, huh? _The Amazing Keith Kogane_ with his fancy words that were so _meaningful_ , so goddamn _beautiful_... WHERE DID HE GO?! Tell me those weren’t lies!” and slammed Keith into the cold hard surface. Keith grunted at the impact and shoved Lance away, taking a step back.

Fingers easily slipped away from Keith and Lance wasn’t sure what he expected. Keith fighting back? A nasty brawl? Lance ached to do something but he controlled that anger bubbling inside him, seeing that look of almost defeat washed over Keith.

“Lance,” Keith uttered gently, “those letters were real and every single one of them meant something to me too. They were our moments I cherished.”

“Then why?” Lance knitted his brows and pushed on, wanting to reach him and hold him. Take away the pain. “Tell me why, make me understand you.”

“Because I can’t. It’s as simple as that,” Keith ended with that final statement and headed up the stairs. He was stubborn as a mule, difficult.

“Where you going?” Lance asked, about to follow him too.

“Stay. Get some rest. I have to check the perimeter for a bit.”

“I’ll come with you.”

“No, it’s nothing you should concern yourself with.”

“Fine but this conversation isn’t over, you got that?”

They both stared at each other until Keith pulled away first without a word and disappeared.

-

After spending time looking for a way to open a can of peaches and satisfy a hungry belly, Lance laid against the mattress, arms behind his head as he stared at the ceiling above. He figured he wait for Keith to come back before deciding to go to sleep. He admitted he was feeling a little tired and with the atmosphere this basement gave, it really tried to lull him to close his eyes.

He turned on his left, folding his jacket into an acceptable pillow before rubbing his hands together for some warmth. The conversation before still lingered in his mind, it was unsettling, disturbing, and he still wanted answers. How complicated could it be? The world was over so what was next except taking the chance to leave? He buried his head into the jacket and succumbed to the darkness.

Time passed but who knew how long, Lance felt something stirred from his sleep beside him and quickly turned. A hand fell on his shoulder, stopping him. The flashlight revealed it was Keith.

“It’s me,” Keith revealed himself with a flashlight. “Sorry, didn’t mean to wake you."

“No, it’s okay, thought I would take a nap,” Lance replied slowly, blinking several times and bellowed a yawn. “Hm… how was your, um, scouting?”

“Nothing out of the ordinary which is good. I brought a container of water down if you’re thirsty,” Keith noted. He then unlaced his boots and shoved them at the end of the mattress.

“Okay, cool,” Lance said, watching him.

Keith went to grab some blankets from one of the boxes and threw one over Lance, hearing a surprise yelp. “You’ll need it.”

“Thanks.” Lance spread the cover out. “Oh, uh, you coming in?” A little blush dusted his cheeks. Right, he was in Keith’s bed and he just made himself comfortable without question.

“Yeah, just don’t take all the room,” Keith settled on the bed and got under the blanket. He clicked the flashlight off and rolled to his right, his back toward Lance. “Goodnight.”

Lance mentally cursed at himself for being embarrassed so easily. “Goodnight, Keith.”

He couldn’t sleep, instead he drifted to the sight of the shadowy outline of Keith’s back. Keith was already fast asleep, his shoulders rose and fell with every inhale and exhale. Lance extended his hand out, no more than a butterfly touch, and laid his entire palm against Keith’s spine.

Warm. Comfort.  

Tomorrow would be a better day.

-

The next morning, Lance felt the mattress shifted and saw Keith moving to get up, but he didn’t pay much attention and fell back asleep. By the time he woke up again, his nose alerted him to the smell of something delicious and spotted a can of heated beans with the words “Home-style” written underneath. A cup of water sat next to it.

Oh.

Lance pulled the covers back, combing his bed hair with his fingers and rubbed his eyes. He was about to thank Keith for the food but noticed he wasn’t here. With silent thanks, he ate the beans with the rich sauce of bacon and brown sugar melted together was delicious. He enjoyed it and gulped the remaining water before heading up to see where Keith went.

When he got to the main floor, there was another door across from him he didn’t noticed before. At least it wasn’t blocked by the roof boards. One glance at the partial opened rooftop and it was a dull day, the gray clouds covered the entire sky, not one ray of shine breaking through.

As he got closer to the unexplored door, he saw the dried blood around that led inside. This was _his_ room. Lance stared at the door, thinking of the answers waiting for him but when he turned the doorknob, it was actually locked. He thought that curiosity of his might helped him understand more about Keith if he went inside.

And it was an invasion of privacy, said the good angel. Plenty of good reasons for Keith to lock it so turn back now, you dick.

Right. No point trying to break in so he left it alone and went to the front of the shop. Keith wasn’t there so he headed outside, eyeing at the cityscapes once more. Abandoned cars behind one another like a train set, the buildings stood like dominos but remained a ghost, dead and left behind. A hint of green covered the edges of some smaller buildings and a flock of birds flew passed, traveling over and through the open windows until they disappeared into a far off distance, to find some kind of life outside of Altea.

Lance couldn’t bear to look anymore and went behind the house. He removed his gloves from his pockets and slipped them on, almost forgetting his fingers about to be numb. The weather was going to kill him before anything else, he sweared on that. He turned to find a fire pit and an empty pot dangling over with a suspension and supports. He noticed the leftover smoke and figured the fire died not too long ago.

Then the familiar sound of the sea called to him. At the end of the boardwalk, Lance made a small leap and onto the beach to get a better view. The ocean was lifeless, the dismal waves hugging the shoreline with each desperate swish.

He settled right in front, not minding the waves, his hands deep in his pockets, and almost half of his face was buried in his jacket. He really hated the cold.

Being in Keith’s shoes, this was the view he saw everyday. The emptiness but unforgettable. How many times did Keith watched from this spot? Or the times he waited in the cold for that letter to arrive?

From the corner of his eye, he spotted a small shadow moving. He turned to his left, finding a snowy cliff while a figure walked up and stopped in front of something he couldn’t make out. It was definitely Keith with his red jacket on, the only color that stood out.

-

When Lance made his way up the cliff, Keith had his back to him, leaning over a pile of rocks and seashells scattered around. He heard some muttering of words, unable to make out but as he closed the distance, he caught on a few.

“...Sorry,”

“Wasn’t supposed to be like this…”

“...Not here…”

“...Messed up.”

“I don’t know what to do.”

Lance paused midway. This wasn’t good, he shouldn’t be intruding. He quickly turned but Keith’s voice called out to him, halting in his steps.

“Lance.”

“Um, uh, you knew I was here?”

“Your footsteps gave you away.”

Lance saw Keith staring at him and he couldn’t escape. “I was, uh, looking for you. I didn’t realize I was… I’m sorry,” he bit the bottom of his lip in shame but Keith shook his head, completely forgiving him.

“Don’t be, come here. You look like a lost deer.”

“Hell I don’t…” Lance mumbled and strode over, every step felt heavier than the first. He stood next to Keith and front of them laid Blue’s grave. A wooden board stuck between the rocks and Blue’s name written as if carved out with care.

“I come here all the time, to get whatever off my chest. It helps to talk and get your thoughts together.”

Lance listened.

“Last night, I meant what I said,” Keith sighed, looking at Blue and then to Lance.

“About me going home,” Lance automatically answered.

Keith nodded. “So I’ll tell you again. Staying here is not the same as living. It’s not easy. You shouldn’t want to be here and you do. Why? Nothing is keeping you here, you know everything now.”

If they were going to have this kind of conversation again then Lance was prepared to give it his all and maybe more. “You think I can’t handle this.”

“I didn’t say that.”

“That’s what it sounds like. You said it’s not easy and I get that, you’ve been through a lot but don’t treat me like I’m some kid.”

“I’m not saying you are. I’m just trying to understand you. Why do you want to be here, why go through all of this?” Keith stretched his arm and indicated to the city behind Lance. “If you really want this then you’re crazier than I thought.”

“It’s you,” Lance blurted out. “I want to be here because of _you_.”

“No,” Keith denied, “you don’t get to say that.”

“Keith, it’s always been you and because,” Lance struggled for the right words, “because… if there’s a chance to live again then I’m willing to risk it. You don’t want me here, fine, that’s cool but now, I’m sort of really really begging. I’ll get on my knees if I have to...”

“I won’t say it again,” Keith gritted his teeth, his body on the defensive, almost waiting to fight. “I’m not going, I’m staying here.”

“Why? What’re you so afraid of?”

“I’m not!”

“Yes. You. Are.” Lance enunciated each word slowly. It was obvious. “It’s like you don’t even want to try!”

That moment, Lance noticed the change in Keith’s face, the one glance at him and another at the grave once more. Defeat. Sorrow. Lance saw him struggling from losing his composure, he was biting back words and eyes drowning of emotions that he didn’t want to see again. In that very second Lance realized the invisible wall he desperately been trying to climb has crumbled and now faced with the final truth. Keith didn’t want this because it would be—

“Oh.”

 _Dishonoring Blue_.

His memory of him. They practically looked alike too. Right. He had forgotten about that.

“Shit. Shit. Shit. I’m an idiot,” Lance laughed at himself. Not only that but a part of Keith still loved Blue. That must be it. Why didn’t he realized it before? He spent all this time with his feelings but he didn’t considered Keith’s own.

“You get it now? Meeting you was more than I can ever ask and now, you’re asking me to abandon this place. I don’t think can’t do that, I can’t leave everything behind.”

“Then what about this?” Lance dug into his back pocket and took out the familiar gold ring that he found in the waters, the same one that Keith sent to him.

_You learn to accept that this was all in the past._

Keith hitched his breath, his lips trembled. “You told me you lost it.”

“Well, I found it when I was diving and what’re the odds, huh? Thought the storm swept it away for good but I guess it had its way of coming back. I kept it ever since and figured I give it back.” Lance explained and held it out for Keith to take. “You told me you moved on. The past is the past. But did you really? What’s the real truth, Keith? Tell me.”

Keith delicately took the ring into his hand, feeling the smooth surface and angling it to reveal the promised words etched on it.

“It belongs to him and it should stay with him, a remembrance of what you two would’ve have and I believe that is something you two can’t forget.” It was hard for him to say it but Lance did what he had to do. It felt right to give the ring back and maybe it would give Keith some closure. Whatever it was, he wanted Keith to be happy.

“I meant what I said, come with me to the other side. That’s not going to change ever.”

Lance turned, not expecting a reply. It wasn’t the right time to tell him, his feelings would have to wait. He quicken his pace, his own heart heavy and exhausted of energy as he made his way back inside the house. The living room looked nice especially the sofa beckoning him an invitation. He stretched himself entirely on it and laid there with him and his thoughts to himself.

He thought Keith moved on, maybe the transitioning would be easier on him so he wouldn’t have to deal with this world. Thinking back, it would be that simple but it never was, nothing was ever easy to deal, and Keith wanted to him to go home but how could he when all these months passed was spent waiting for this very moment. He didn’t want to leave, he liked Keith way too much to say goodbye and who knew when another time liked this can happen again.

“Fuck it,” Lance huffed and grabbed a small pillow behind his head and screamed into it until he tired himself out.

-

“—ey. Hey.”

“Mmm…”

“Lance.”

“Mmm, what?” Lance moaned into his pillow, about to go back to sleep but he heard his name again. “Okay, okay I’m up. What do you want?” He lifted his head and sat upright, finding Keith towering over him.

“Can we talk tonight? About what happened?” Keith asked, a slight hesitance in his voice.

“Not right now?”

“I was hoping we head out and look for more supplies. There’s a place I want to check out too.”

“Oh, uh, yeah sure. I’m down. Tonight then, you better promise or else. I won’t take no again.”

“Tonight we’ll talk, I promise you that,” Keith smiled. “Thank you.”

The two prepared themselves with a backpack and weapons on hand. Keith had Lance carry a gun on him once more, and gave him his own knife he can take around. It was definitely a better weapon choice and felt comfortable to hold. Keith showed him the map of the city, its streets outlined everywhere and red circles pointed out safe zones at certain places. He even had a time-sheet of Galra patrol times and notes where they’ll be at.

The S.C.A.S. was labeled as a safe zone for now and with the right time, Keith wanted to go back to his old workplace and see if he can find another portal device. He was worried about ΩX and if it needed to be stabilized again.

“Does the Galra know about them?” Lance asked, taking the bike helmet from Keith.

“Yeah, they’re the ones who helped us make the device,” Keith answered and placed his own helmet over his head, “They even tried crossing over but it didn’t go so well for them.”

“That’s a good thing though, less of them means the better.”

“Yeah. I haven’t gone to the other portals myself since Omega Ex but I’m thinking those portals collapsed because it couldn’t keep steady for long. It depends on their sizes and energy they’re able to produced too.”

“So you think this Omega Ex is going to…” Lance swallowed.

“I’m not getting my hopes up on that.”

“What happens when they do? Don’t they just disappear?”

“Well, what’s the thing. They do but…” Keith frowned and tapped his fingers against his bike, “a catastrophic event will occurred. We had one happened.”

“No way. Where was this?”

“It was outside of Altea, over to the west lies Balmera. It’s all hills and mountains, unlike here. The inhabitants were focused on keeping the lands safe, environmentally friendly and all. They were even known for their wildlife preservation and received high honors on their education centers all majored in different studies of agriculture. Altea had a strong relationship with them through the years and we both prospered from each other. Ever since the Balmera Collapse from Alpha Ex, the place was almost erased from the map. What’s left of it is a gigantic crater.”

“Holy fuck, you can’t be serious!”

“I wish I wasn’t. Altea offered to help and took in refugees during the aftermath. It was a difficult time for them but we were in the process of rebuilding them a new home. Don’t worry though, Omega Ex won’t come to that,” Keith sat on his bike and turned on its engine. “Let’s go.”

-

As they made their way through the city streets, Lance discovered the complexity of this entire situation. The Galra, portals, the possible collapse, and Keith. Everything really. Goddamn it all. At least the one thing he liked right now was finding the area empty of the Galra which made traveling an easy breeze. When they arrived at the S.C.A.S., the dome stood proudly with its towering floors of glass behind.

“Fancy,” Lance commented, “bet it takes forever to wash those windows. 

“And the amounts of complaints when birds fly into them.”

“Niiiice.”

They went through the parking lot and stepped inside.

Down the hallways and corridors painted in blood, only their footsteps were heard and nothing more. Keith checked several rooms, rummaging through the drawers and breaking through the locked inventories keeping antibiotics and various medicines.

“Guess one of the perks of working here, huh?”

Keith snorted, “amongst other things too. Oh here,” he threw Lance a pack of chewing gum, “for you.”

“Gum? Uh I don’t really need it though,” Lance waved it between his fingers.

“A gift and for your breath,” Keith snickered and headed out of the room.

“Excuse you!” Lance growled and stashed it in his pocket angrily. Keith’s laughter rang in the hall.

They made their way down underground but half of the area was drenched in water. Slowly, they maneuvered their way through, careful not getting the bag wet. The water was freezing and Lance had to complain about his soaked pants and shoes while Keith, well, he didn’t like it either but he wasn’t a man with many words. The water levels decreased when they reached Level D, the hallway lights flickered in different lengths of time, even some fixtures detached themselves from the ceiling like puppets on strings.

“We’re almost there,” Keith grunted and pushed away some carts to the side. Lance helped him lift fallen debris blocking their path and small slabs along the way.

“Not to be pessimistic or anything but what if it’s not there? Then what?”

“Then there isn’t. The one I have is back at home but it’s been damaged so I haven’t been able to make it work since then. Figured I try my luck and go from there.”

The light bulb went off.

“Oh you know, my dad, uh, he was a pilot and he used to bring me to his shop and taught me how fix his planes. Tinker here and there so maybe I can take a look at it, you think?”

“That sounds plausible but not sure how much you can help with the Galra tech but yeah, I would like that,” Keith ended with an appreciative tone.

“As long as you trust me with it.”

-

The device wasn’t there.

What waited for them inside that room was a pack of lizard-like aliens sleeping, the size of a velociraptor. Their sharp claws rested against the floor and their quiet breathing didn’t really helped much because those pointy teeth protruding out of their broad mouth. Black stripes visible over their skin while their entire body a color of forest green and purple, even some had faded scars, long enough to leave to one’s own imagination.

“Wha—Mmf?!”

Keith quickly cupped Lance’s mouth and pulled him back slowly as they stepped out. Those creatures, whatever they were, Lance had no interest in finding out.

One of the aliens shuffled from its sleep and lifted its head up. It opened its mouth, a low pitch coo and a sharp yellow eye opened. Lance caught one glimpse of it before he was immediately pulled into an empty opened room to their left. He was dragged further back and lowered to the ground behind an office desk. They both laid flat against the floor and Keith bent his head, seeing the small open view underneath. Lance shook Keith’s arm, expecting an answer but Keith signaled him not to say a word while his other hand pulled out a knife.

Lance felt a drop in his stomach, the horror haunted him once again. His pocket knife rested at his side, his thumb rolled over to the switch and waited. He fucking prayed as if he never prayed in his whole life that he would survive this, but the _tap tap_ against the floor told him they needed more than just luck to make it out alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ᕕ(ᐛ)ᕗ


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was inspired from the video game The Last of Us because the Ellie and Riley DLC :') I miss that game... so yeah, this chapter is a bit lighter than the previous. Let me know what you think! Thanks for the comments and kudos, you guys are great : >

Step 1: Don’t freak out.

Step 2: Deep breaths. Deep breaths. Deep breaths.

Step 3: BE QUIET.

Step 4: If some alien monster decided to end your life then immediately go to Step 5.

Step 5: R.U.N. If success then congrats, you reached all steps of Lance’s survival guide created in those ten seconds he was able to spare.

Step 6: Actually. Assuming you’re still alive then you deserve a medal but reality, keep running and don’t look back.

Step 7: You looked back. How could you?!

Lance was doing well, his first three steps weren’t a problem but he still hated everything.

That said lizard monster entered the room, curiously sniffing the air and emitted a low growl. Lance could see its feet moving closer and closer, and all he wanted to do was curl up and disappear forever. He shut his eyes and all he heard was the _tap tap_ , and several items scattered onto the floor in a mess.

_Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap._

The monster bumped against the desk and sniffed the air once more until it reared its head over. That was when Lance felt the hot air caressing the top of his hair and heard that rumble in its throat. He looked up, fearful blue meeting feral gold until Keith jumped out and plunged his weapon into its head.

Lance couldn’t move, watching in awe how Keith gritted his teeth, twisting the blade into the soft skin until its limbs stopped moving. Keith pulled the knife out and the animal fell to the ground dead.

“Jesus,” Lance breathed, he couldn’t believed what he saw, “the fuck was that? You killed that thing and… and man, you took it down like it was nothing.”

“Yeah, yeah I’ll explain later but first, we have to get out of here,” Keith said, putting his weapon back and turned his head at the outside noises, “shit, we can’t go out there, fuck.”

“Maybe we can—How about… Uh,” Lance looked around and spotted a vent above them. He pointed, “can we go through there?”

“That’s perfect,” Keith patted Lance’s back with a smile and grabbed a chair, positioning it. “Go, I’ll follow.”

Lance quickly climbed over it and checked the edges of the vent before he found a little lift hatch to open it. “You sure it’s okay?” He stared into the darkness.

“Go! You’ll be fine.” Keith handed him a pocket light and pressed on. “Now hurry.”

Lance felt better and climbed his way into the vent, Keith heading in after. They both crawled their way through and heard clattering of claws against the floor in haste. Their screeches painfully echoed through the vents before the multiple of movements headed out of the room and only silence was left.

“Keep moving, once we find a safe area then we can make our way out of this building,” Keith said and clicked his tongue in annoyance. “Damn it, why were they here…”

Lance saw two splits and took the left path instead. “Did they know you were coming?”

“That’s impossible, unless they had a reason to be here.”

“What were those things back there?” Lance asked, passing the area half-submerged in water.

“We called them scavengers. They move in packs mostly, their thick hide makes it hard to kill but the delicate spot right around their head is vulnerable. If they’re here then their master isn’t far,” Keith scowled with distaste.

“We?”

“Ah. Some time ago, I joined this group called The Resistance and you guessed it, they thought they had the chance to fight against the Galra. Our leader taught us how to be smart and to defend ourselves. I caught on pretty quickly so I guess you can say I wouldn’t be alive if it wasn’t for him. He can be a little hard on us but really, he cared a lot.”

“Is he…?”

“Dead? I’m not so sure anymore,” Keith uttered.

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright. He was a good friend, you’d be surprised how many he can take on, his strength was impeccable and a voice of reason,” Keith answered solemnly and stopped. “Anyways, whoever is controlling those creatures isn’t far behind. We’re not alone so be on the lookout for anyone not human.”

“Not human. Gotcha.”

-

They stopped every time when they heard the creatures running down the hallways. They knew the underground area was compromised and if they continued to stay on Level D any longer, they will surely be found out. They didn’t dare risk coming out from the vents but with Keith’s knowledge of the rooms, they had a chance of survival. Lance counted on him, he trusted him enough to get out of here.

It was a dead end when Lance made two rights so they turned around and Keith led. Who knew how long it was but Lance felt his leg muscles aching in desperate need of a stretch. Keith still had the energy to keep going but for Lance’s sake, they stopped so Lance can shift his body a bit.

“I swear this would be the worst place to die,” Lance commented and stretched one leg far behind, feeling that muscle relaxing.

“We’re not dying,” Keith answered, sneaking a look at one room. “You good?”  
  
“Yeah, yeah. You can keep moving.”

It felt like an endless maze, the many turns they took reminded Lance of lab mice looking for that block of cheese. If a mouse had a lifespan of two to three years then how long can Lance survive before his time was up?

“Wait,” Keith whispered.

“What?”

“Ssh.”

“Sir, I compiled the list of humans who worked at this facility in the past years and their connection to Project Voltron. We also cross referenced them to our database and ruled out the negatives,” said the soldier housed in a metal armor. He pulled up the images in the air, showing all photographs of employees at S.C.A.S. and a big red X on the ones who were already terminated.

Lance squinted and spotted faces he didn’t recognized until he realized the word. Dr. Takahashi Shirogane under one picture, a man who looked to be in his early thirties with short black hair and an undercut with a strange purple symbol stamped over his picture which was unfamiliar.

“Excellent,” the second voice replied with a slither of pleasantry. “And?”

“One human is missing from our records,” added the soldier and pulled up the file with a face and small description underneath. “We haven’t been able to find him since The Resistance.”

Lance stared in horror and turned to Keith who wore the same reaction.

_Keith Kogane_

_Age: 25_

_Height: 5’7”_

_Job: Physicist_

_Current Status: Missing_

“Keep searching for him, the commander wants him alive...”

Lance mouthed a “holy shit” at him, pointing at the picture and back to Keith. Keith simply gave him a look like ‘yes, I know’ and pointed a thumb forward, telling Lance to keep moving.

When it was safe enough to talk, Lance was the first to speak. “Dude, what the hell they want with you? And who was that purple dude, he looks creepy.”

“His name is Haxus. He commands the ground forces here and the one who took down The Resistance. He’s also no one you should pay attention since we’ll never see him again,” Keith paused after finding the right level and moved to kick the vent open. They exited down onto a white hallway, the never ending stretches of windows surrounding them, allowing them to see a clear view of the outside. “The portal device I told you about is under Project Voltron and whatever I know about it, guess they find me a valuable target.”

“Guess you’re pretty good when it comes to staying off their radar, slipped right through the fingers.” Lance gave a smirk and Keith expressed the same.

“That’s the point.”

-

They made their way out of S.C.A.S. without any more Galra meetings. They hydrated themselves and ate some protein bars in the process. When they finished, Keith grabbed his bike and walked the opposite of where they came from.

“Isn’t your place the other way?”

“Well,” Keith said and stopped in his tracks. “There’s an arcade nearby, wanna check it out?”

“You want to go to an arcade?” Lance deadpanned.

“It’s not that far.”

“But you. Arcade. _Really_?”

Keith rolled his eyes. “Please don’t tell me you’re surprised by this revelation.”

“I might! Just didn’t peg you to be an arcade dude,” Lance muttered to the side. Oh yeah, he was definitely feeling a glare directed straight at him. “Um, you sure you don’t wanna head back though?”

“I’m sure.” Keith bit his lip in thought. “They know who I am and if anything, they’ll definitely know where I live.”

“But—”

“Time. That’s all I need to throw them off the trail.”

“But what if it’s a trap? For all we know, wouldn’t they leave those guys to guard the area? And what about those creepy monsters we saw back? They could be waiting for us and that Hakshoos dude, whatever his name is! What if they destroy the house? And that device? Shit, shit, shit. That’s important too!”

“Lance,” Keith knocked his kickstand in place, “give me your hands.”

“Huh?”

“Your hands. Please.”

Lance obeyed but a bit skeptical, placing them within Keith’s own hold. “You’re being weird.”

“Shy?”

“Don’t make fun of me.” Lance mildly pouted, but he kind of liked Keith holding his hands right now.

“You’re shaking. Calm down, you’re overthinking things,” Keith calmly stated and rubbed his fingers around Lance’s hands, stroking each joints and knuckles. The warmth running through his skin felt nice. “I know it’s hard but trust me what I say and do.”

“How? How can...” Lance struggled to find the right words, and Keith, carrying that strength and never let himself be unbroken by the world around him almost as if he doesn’t fear it no longer.

“What?” Keith didn’t stop his touches.

“Doesn’t it scare you? Knowing what they’ll do?”

“Can you keep a secret?”

“Yeah? It’s not like I can tell anyone.”

“It scares me in many ways, Lance. More than you know.”

“Really?” Lance couldn’t believe it. “You’re, well, that’s impossible. You don’t seemed scared at all, like the cogs in your head keep turning no matter what happens. Guess you’re kind of invincible in a way.”

“You have a high opinion of me,” Keith stated.

Lance nodded, the right words wouldn’t come out.

“I wouldn’t be human if I didn’t know how to be afraid but I’ve learned not to give into it. I can’t always predict what’s going to happen next but I can be prepared, be ahead of the game, and what’s important to me is to make sure you’re safe.”

_Safe._

“Give me a gun and I can take it apart and reassemble it. Give me letters and books and I can make poetry and science come to life. Omega Ex, Project Voltron, they’re all a part of me. I can do so much but I don’t know how to protect _you_. And that’s probably what I fear the most.”

Lance stilled, eyes widened when he suddenly thought of Blue. Without thinking, he returned the kindness and caressed Keith’s hands, going through the same motions. These were the hands that been through a lot. Callouses and scars with a story behind them. “I’m still here, not a part of me is missing. Without you, I don’t know where I’ll be so don’t be afraid. I can’t do much but I can be your support and more.”

“What makes you so sure of yourself to trust me with your life?” Keith questioned, stopping Lance’s hands but he doesn’t let go of them.

“I just do.”

-

Keith broke the locks and pushed the doors apart as they gave an unnatural low creaking sound. “Here we are,” he announced and Lance headed inside first. The games were all lined up around the room at their disposal despite many of the machines were without electricity and several already remained on. One game caught Lance’s attention and moved toward it with sudden interest.

“Oh sweet, you have Streets of the Undead Two!” Lance went up to the machine and noticed the blue and white static on the screen. “Aw man, don’t tell me it’s busted.” He gave the machine a knock a few times.

“It’s busted,” Keith replied as he came over, giving a quick glance.

“Damn, for a sec there I thought I was gonna play it.” The game brought Lance some good memories. When he was a boy, him and his sister would stop by the arcade every Friday night trying to beat each other’s scores. No doubt they would try to distract each other, bumping against each other and waving their hands in each other’s faces. It was pretty fun and in the end, there wasn’t a clear winner, only two siblings killing zombies for a living. And they ended up grabbing ice cream when they were finished.

Lance picked the light blue gun up, making shooting sound effects with it. He even pointed the gun at Keith and went ‘pow’. “I totally rock at this game, mind you. Lance McClain, top shooter extraordinaire. All slay, no chill bro.”

Keith stared in disbelief. “Yeah? Well sorry to burst your bubble but I’m number one on the Leaderboard here.” He picked the red gun from its holster and made a ‘boom’ sound at him.

“Yeah, okay,” Lance scoffed. “If this actually worked then maybe I’ll show you a thing or two.”

“Hm, you know what? It does.”

“What? No way.”

“Trust me. Close your eyes.”

Lance raised his brow.

“Do it.”

“Fine, fine.” Eyes were closed.

“Okay. You know how the game works so get ready to shoot some baddies.”

“Are we… role-playing?”

“Lance, please. Focus. I already pressed the start button.”

-

**Chapter 1: The Beginning**

“The agent is driving in his car through the streets of an old town but oh man, this ugly ass imp stops the car out of nowhere! In his squeaky voice he’s all like ‘ _I’ve already taken care of H. This is only the beginning. You’re next_ ’ and that devil flies off.”

“Oh god, I hate that bastard.”

“Don’t worry, you’ll get to fight him soon enough. Quick, they’re here! There’s one to your left!”

“Ah!” Lance quickly pressed the trigger multiple times, he could even remember the sounds of gunshots while his eyes remained closed.

“Nice! Reload! Here comes another one next to it—Ouch, what a headshot. Great, you entered into a building to your left and—Fuck! There’s more of them right in front of you!”

“Take this!” Lance emptied his clip and reloaded once more.

“Behind the chair!”

Lance heard the growls of the zombie and knew where to aim. Three bullets to the face.

“He’s going to be feeling that if ever wakes up,” Keith said proudly.

With the help of Keith narrating the story, Lance slowly visualized the game clearly in his mind. How he rescued that one civilian and managed to shoot an incoming axe to the face. He didn’t lose a life yet but man, when Judgement Boss came into play, Lance got a bit salty over the fact that demonic imp flying across the screen. He hated missing.

“Unlimited ammo though.”

“This enemy just wastes my time, man. He needs to go away.”

“You’re almost there.” Keith cheered him on. “A few more hits should do it.”

After Lance took down that boss, the game continued on with Keith guiding him all the way until the Magician boss battle.

“Keith, I swear… I’m gonna need backup on this one. Wanna lend me a hand?”

“Already on it.”

The two battled together against the mighty foe. The human-hybrid flew across the screen, sending out balls of energy at them but together, they shot them down until they finally defeated it.

“Aw yes! That’s what I’m talking about!” Lance cried, pumped his fist in the air before aiming for a high five.

“That was all you, please,” Keith smirked but nonetheless, didn’t leave Lance hanging.

“Nah, WE did it.” Lance smiled, his spirits lifted. “Probably didn’t beat your score at this level but eh, I’ll take what I can.”

“You earned yourself a spot.” Keith patted his back and put the gun away. “You know this arcade is but a small part of the mall. Wanna see what else is there?”

“Hell yeah!”

They exited out of the arcade and into a free area, plenty of empty stores around while escalators went to the different levels of the building. Lance couldn’t believe how big the mall was. Was it possible for it to have more than three levels? Apparently so. Looking up, it seemed it would take forever to reach the top floor.

“It’s the biggest mall in the entire city. It’s called the Castle of Lions and well… it’s pretty impressive.” Keith walked around and up the escalator while Lance was still in awe of everything. “Careful, there’s—” Keith steadied Lance before he tripped. “...Bricks.”

“You didn’t see anything.” Lance let out a light laugh and Keith smiled back.

“Of course.”

-

One of the stores they entered was a toy and game shop but with the lack of lighting, they turned on their pocket lights before browsing around, passing by rows of dolls, mini train sets, and fake plastic weapons.

“Yo, check this out,” Lance called out and picked up a plastic crossbow and loaded a suction cup arrow on it. He fired it straight and landed right on Keith’s chest. “Bull’s eye!”

“Hey.” Keith removed it and stared at it. “Seriously?”

Lance released another arrow and Keith dodged it as it was aimed at his head. “Aw, you’re no fun. Would’ve worth a thousand points there.” He prepared to nocked another arrow.

“Now you’re asking for it,” Keith gave his devious grin and disappeared into the back.

“Keith? Hey, where you going?” Lance moved and slowly made his way down the aisle but he wasn’t there. He turned back thinking he might surprise him from behind and checked but Keith had disappeared like a ninja turtle.

He heard nothing until he felt a tap against the back of his head. “What the…” He turned and met with another dart right between the eyes.

“Gah!”

“Now that’s what I call a head shot,” Keith held a fake bow in one hand and clipped a dart on the bowstring, readying to aim another.

“Hey, that’s no fair. You have like a bunch of ammo on you!” Lance exclaimed and jumped when one was aimed at his legs. “You missed—Ha!” He dodged one and ran down an aisle and went to his left, finding another weapon to use. He even shut his light in case and it seemed Keith did the same.

Now it was both of them in a jungle of weapons at their disposal. Lance quickly grabbed a Frisbee and threw it into the air, hoping to distract Keith and heard a loud cry.

“The hell, Lance?!”

He didn’t respond and snickered to himself before throwing a second one.

“You know you’re practically giving away your position!” And heard a _thunk_ as the disc landed.

“Maybe that’s the point!” He responded back and slipped down a row of masks and costumes until he jumped at the sound of a witch cackling. He just lost ten years of his life. “Nope, nope, nope.”

“You’re pretty loud.” Keith appeared at the end, his bow readied but Lance immediately stole a skeleton prop right next to the witch, using it as a shield. The arrow hit against the rib cage and fell.

“Looks like _you’ve got a bone to pick with him_ ,” Lance joked, seeing that unamused look on Keith’s face as if he just heard the cheesiest and dumbest line in all his life. “Dude, I’m funny. I know I am.” and threw the prop at Keith. “Here, this poor dude had no body to dance with!” and ran the other direction.

“That’s a terrible line too!”

Their game became a cat and mouse, both messing each other with tricks and puns galore. Lance was pretty fast, easily distracting Keith with a bunch of stuff lying around while Keith never hesitated to shoot an arrow despite missing. Lance counted how many times he was shot and figured Keith was down to his last arrow and it was their last showdown.

Lance found a toy rifle and hid under a table set meant for children. He looked through the scope and waited. The excitement coursing through his body and that adrenaline, he hadn’t had this much fun in a while. He kept waiting and waiting but Keith was nowhere. Maybe he got lost or he was really hiding in a good spot.

Suddenly spiders appeared near him.

“OH FUCK!” Lance shouted and bumped his head against the table, letting out a painful cry before wiggling his way out and shot at one. It turned out to be a fake spider.

But Lance knew he shouldn’t have his back turned. A quick distraction and he turned immediately, aiming his plastic weapon and saw Keith right in front of him with an arrow aimed at him.

“Spiders, huh? Pretty cool tactic you got there,” Lance commented, keeping his cool but damn, he fucking hated spiders. They were the worst.

“Had to get you out somehow,” Keith replied without an ounce of sorry.

Both of them released a shot and Lance was the first to fake his death. His dramatic tone of him dying and his right arm over his head, pretending he was in pain and how everything was growing dark and cold. Keith shook his head and stared at the over-the-top Lance until Lance laid on the floor and closed his eyes. Keith had to turned on his little flashlight to make sure and discovered a “dead” Lance with a smile on his face.

“Well that was anti-climatic.” Keith shook his head and bent his knees to join him on the floor. “You ever did any acting? I bet people would kill to have you in their movies.”

“I’ll just pretend I didn’t hear the obvious sarcasm.” Lance opened both eyes. “And maybe in that one school play but I was probably ten.”

“Yeah? What was that like?”

“Eh,” Lance shrugged and waved his hand as if it wasn’t important, “I remembered not wanting to be in a play. I think it was the whole stage fright thing too, it wasn’t cool.”

“Having the audience staring at you.”

“God, I just hate that so much. Judging you for everything you do, but that’s all said and done. Guess my fear has gotten a little better over time, maybe not the stage part but in other areas.” Lance then turned on his side facing Keith, already finding Keith studying him. It would be nice to know what he was thinking but he was grabbing straws at times.

“Such as?”

“You.”

“Me?”

“Being honest over here. This whole thing, taking me here. It was pretty fun,” Lance admitted, feeling a bristle of heat over his cheeks.

“Oh.” Keith suddenly realized. “Yeah, wouldn’t want you to miss out and all.”

“It kind of feels... like a date, y’know?” Lance answered slowly, growing a bit nervous and swallowed, trying to discern the emotion over Keith’s face but it was hard to tell this time. Already, he messed up with that awkward silence and it continued to be very unsettling.

“I’m just saying! Anyone would think like that,” he blurted out quickly, hiding the fact he wasn’t aiming this to be some romantic moment.

“I guess it kind of is when you put it that way,” Keith responded carefully and added, “it wasn’t my intention.”

Lance brushed it off like it was nothing. “It’s fine, I’m just teasing. We should, uh, come back here next time. There’s a lot I haven’t seen yet, right? Would be cool if you can show me around some more.”

Maybe it was as honest he can be for now but his heart continued to twist, bleeding sweet words that Keith may never here. It was tempting, them lying together like this and all it would take was for him to make that one move. To turn off the light and pull Keith in, wondering what it would feel like to have his lips pressed against his own.

“We should get going, the sun’s probably setting soon.” Keith sat up, his bow left abandoned and his backpack slid behind his back.

“Right, sounds good.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Uggghh I came down with this dumb cold so I'm constantly sniffling and sneezing BUT I managed to pull through and finished this chapter. Hoping this cold doesn't get any worse, ugggh.
> 
> This chapter was a little hard to write just because I'm trying to handle realism with Keith's situation and boy, it drove me crazy. The next update might be a little slow because wow schoolwork has no chill atm... Anyways~
> 
> Hope you guys had a great Halloween and stuffed your faces with candy :>!

There was a boy.

 

A boy who didn’t expect his world to be turned upside down.

 

It started with a rumor and that became his greatest fall.

 

To begin, he hated rumors and eighty percent of that anger was directed at his so-called friends for teasing him after school about Nyma Orlov. They supposedly heard, from one ear to another, that she had a secret crush on him, but guessed it wasn't really a secret anymore. His friends poked fun about him not telling them with their ‘ooh’s and ‘aah’s added in as if it was the best kind of news they ever heard.

 

_“Keeping her all to yourself, you sly fox! I see what you did there.”_

 

_“Yooo, she’s the one for you!”_

 

_“That’s love right there. Bro, you’re so lucky.”_

 

_“Shut up! She does not. You’re making it up.”_

 

_“I don’t know about you but I heard her talk some stuff and they sound pretty lit.”_

 

He wasn’t sure how to take it all in except he couldn’t stop thinking about it when he came home from school. The ride on the bus, him ignoring the other kids but watching everything outside became a blur. When he got home and went to his room, his homework long forgotten and the fifteen math problems he had to work on due tomorrow.

 

How does one explain about Nyma?

 

Nyma was talented in theater and had a personality of a sunflower and mysterious as the sea. She loved acting and always landed on the star role in their school plays. She was tall and graceful, always kept it cool. Everyone nicknamed her as “The Goddess” while he was just a kid with a simple life.

 

Go to school, learn, and head home.

 

He didn’t attend extra activities after school, and if his friends invited him to hang out then sure, that wasn’t a problem. Video games and movies were always a plus, and there was no Nyma.

 

So why would his friends say that? They were definitely lying but did this Nyma girl really had a crush on him? If so, then it was stupid. She was stupid, and he didn’t understand but he knew when a girl had a crush, it was going to get complicated. But what complications exactly? He didn’t know but he trusted his gut feeling that it wasn’t anything good.

 

So he decided the only way to understand all of this was to ask his dad.

 

He went downstairs.

 

Fifteen year-old Lance made his way into the living room, finding his mother browsing through the pages of their photo album. One out of the possible five she had lying around, the rest were a mystery to him. When it came to his mom, she was the best at compiling pictures and finding the most embarrassing ones to put in the book. It was definitely her wanting to show off every naked baby photo to their relatives every time they had a family gathering.

 

“Mooooom, please put that away,” Lance whined when he spotted her holding one picture sporting a naked butt. _HIS_ naked butt.

 

“Oh don’t be silly, you had the cutest of butts.” Her starlight grin graced upon her lips. “And the worst of cries.” She raised another photo of him with tears streaming down his face when he didn’t want to eat whatever green goo was in front of him.

 

“Put it away, oh my god!” Lance tried to snatch it right out of his mother’s hand but she was too fast for him. She even had the nerve to waved the picture in a playful manner.

 

“Sorry but you know how I adore this one.”

 

“Whatever, mom.” Lance was quick to forgive. “You know where dad is?”

 

“Hm, he’s probably in his study downstairs catching up on his books again. Why?”

 

“Oh nothing.” He turned to leave.

 

“Is it something I should know about?” She asked curiously but didn’t press.

 

Lance held a hand up. “It’s a father-son moment, okay. You wouldn’t understand.”

 

“So it’s a secret, huh?” His mother smiled and released a laughter that reminded Lance of spring, so full of life and kind. “If you say so. My boy is growing up so fast, doesn’t even need his mother anymore.” She even faked a sob.

 

Lance groaned and left to find his father.

 

He went downstairs and peeked behind the door of his dad’s study room, finding his father bent over with a book in hand and cup of coffee on his polished desk. The book was a dark maroon with its spine decorated with a thin gold band running along it but the name Lance couldn’t make out.

 

As if his dad knew he was there, he looked up from his book and placed a bookmark between the pages. He removed his glasses. “Hey, kid. Come on in, don’t be shy.”

 

“I’m not.” Lance entered. “You just looked busy.”

 

“Not at all, I came down and thought I join in the adventures of this fine book.” His dad gave the book a pat. “What is it? Don’t tell me you need more allowance.”

 

“Well, uh, no… it’s something else.”

 

His father’s smile reminded him of rustic autumn. “Well then, I’m all ears.”

 

Lance took a deep breath. “When did you know mom was the one?”

 

He saw his father’s eyes lit up and told him to take a seat next to him. He gave him quite the talk and for Lance, it was all new to him and needed more than a story about how his dad and mom met, but what he didn’t realized that in ten years, he would discovered how true his father’s words were.

 

_“Once you figured it out, everything will click into place. Love isn’t meant to be rushed but allowing time for it to blossom, to create something beautiful. It’s about learning and understanding, seeing that person who they really are and they will do the same to you. There’ll be bumps along the way, and moments that will hurt or test your limits so you best be careful. The path is never clear, remember that. It’s different for everyone but I hope one day, when you find that special someone, you two will learn to love one another just as much as your mother and I did.”_

 

-

 

It turned out those rumors were a lie when he was fifteen. Thanks, Rolo. Nyma was the first to step up to the plate, told him about how she disliked hearing those rumors about herself, and Lance easily admitted that he felt the same. There was no crush.

 

_“You shouldn’t listen to everything your friends say.”_

 

_“Boys be boys. So much drama when you least expect it.”_

 

_“I don’t need all that nonsense, y’know? Makes me all stressed out.”_

 

Their talk ended on a good note, and Nyma, well, she wasn’t the type to forget a face. Surprisingly, she knew who he was since they went to the same schools growing up and had several classes together so it started from there.

 

They slowly became friends. How easily it was for her to slip into his life, and he accepted that.

 

It kind of opened a new world for him.

 

Nyma wasn’t terrible, per say. Not always the preppy person he expected and he kind of found her cute. The word _cute_ wasn’t a word Lance threw around so that right there was saying an awful lot. She had this air around her. Confident. Always knew what to say and not let emotions get to her. Everything about her kept things interesting, and he liked that a lot.

 

It made him realized the time they spent together (only as friends), he wondered if it was possible to develop a crush on her. A real one.

 

He never noticed it until he started to pay attention. Nyma’s electric purple eyes were vibrant under the right shade of light or the way her lips would curl at his funny jokes. He liked how she would tug her blonde hair behind her ears when she was shy and asked questions she didn’t know the answer to. He had thoughts about wanting to hold her hand and see her smile again just for him.

 

He really liked Nyma.

 

-

 

When he turned eighteen, he had his first kiss.

 

But his last days of school, he was sick of himself. He should have seen it coming.

 

Nyma was good. She was very good at acting and not just on stage. A pretender. A fake, and she did it without any regrets.

 

_“You’re pathetic, Lance. But hey, it was fun while it lasted, right?”_

 

-

 

_“That sounds cheesy. What if you don’t find that special someone, then what?”_

 

_“Chin up, you’re still a growing boy. You’ll find that person and when you do, you’ll know deep inside that this person is the one.”_

 

-

 

“We’re here.”

 

The Altea Apartments were a group of buildings together, each with ten levels and seven rooms on every floor. In the past, some small talk spread about the young ambassador who grew up in one of these buildings, making it quite an attraction for all Alteans and humans to come. They said she left her writings and drawings on the walls which many people tried to find because it was considered a good fortune. Her father joked to the media about how it was her way of expressing her artistic side but good luck trying to find them, only he and his daughter knew the location.

 

Those innocent drawings were never to be found, he explained to Lance. The first time Keith stayed in this building, it wasn’t to hunt for them but used as a safe house with the Resistance, and discussed matters on how to tackle the Galra army.

 

“Is that where we going? To your old room?” Lance asked.

 

“Yes.”

 

Keith settled for the seventh floor of the building, particularly room 703, and made sure the place wasn’t rigged since the last time he visited. He also checked for any possible Galra tech that may be lying around. No trip wires, and every corner was looked thoroughly and given a clear. Lance couldn’t believe what he was seeing as he watched him rummaged the place with precision, taking apart the lamps and looking under the furniture. He even opened the already broken television and commented about it being necessary. Keith rathered not deal with surprises.

 

Under the floorboard, Keith found his cache of supplies. Guns, grenades, ammo, and food inside. He threw Lance a plastic bag of dried peaches before taking out what he needed and hiding the stash once more.

 

“So how many places you got like this one?” Lance questioned and ripped open the bag, nibbling on a small dried peach.

 

“Several,” Keith answered and placed the floorboard back before covering it up with a rug. He then grabbed a slice of dried peach from the bag. “Before this one, our main base was destroyed so we’re pretty lucky to have this place still standing. Also, why don’t you use the bathroom? There might be some running water left.”

 

“Perfect. You think there’d be hot water for the shower?” Lance pondered with some hope and ate some more peaches before handing the rest of the bag to Keith.

 

“Don’t know but you better save me some or else.”

 

“We’ll see about that.” Lance then took a gander around the room, its walls covered in shade of a creamy vanilla but some areas were ripped or stained of old age. Dust and debris settled around the tables and chairs, and kitchen cabinets and storages emptied of anything. He even dared to look in the fridge and regretted immediately.

 

“What’s wrong?” Keith wondered.

 

“Uh nothing, thought I saw a bug,” Lance replied and took a trip to the bathroom instead.

 

With a few flicks, Lance managed to turn on the bathroom lights but after ten seconds, it turned itself off.

 

“Damn it,” Lance cursed and used his own mini-light to see himself in the mirror. He set it on the edge of the sink and surprisingly, he hadn’t noticed the state he was in but he figured going into vents and crawling through the passageways, he was bound to pick up every kind of dirt along the way. At least, he didn’t have some kind of dead animal clinging onto him.

 

With a few twists of the handle, cold water poured out of the faucet in a steady stream and he wasn’t going to complain. He scooped some into his hands and cleaned his face before going through his hair. After he was done, he tried his luck with the shower but no water came out so he resorted back to the sink. He removed his jacket and sweater to clean his body.

 

“You need help?” The voice stirred the silence.

 

“Hm?” Lance turned to find Keith staring at him. “Um.” Oh yeah, Keith was definitely _staring_ and it wasn’t weird at all.

 

“I’m… I’m good.” Lance instinctively grabbed a towel from the rack to cover himself and there was that awkwardness hovering between them again.

 

“I can help with your back if you like.” Keith offered his hand out for the towel.

 

Lance expected a comment about him being embarrassed again, but he was saved from dying for the nth time and accepted the assistance.

 

“Yeah, I would like that.” Lance handed the towel over and turned around. His hand combed through his hair and felt the ends against his neck. His face beet red.

 

Soon, the sudden chill of a wet cloth pasted against his back. A shiver escaped Lance’s lips.

 

“Sorry.” He heard Keith said before the towel moved to his shoulders but Lance shook his head that it was fine. Keith took his time, his meticulous and tender touches were nice, and Lance pondered about everything once again.

 

-

 

This night in particular felt too quiet and Lance wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing. He spotted Keith by the bedroom window, eyes paying much attention to the world outside as if they were about to be attacked any second.

 

“Hey, why don’t you get some rest?” Lance suggested, “I can sleep on the couch or something.”

 

“No, you go ahead. I’ll be up for a while,” Keith said and his gaze never left the empty street below them. His gun sat against the window sill within reach.

 

“Oh come on, take a small nap. It doesn’t hurt to shut your eyes for a little bit.”

 

“I told you before I don’t sleep much. You need it more than I do.”

 

“Then… I’ll stay up with you.”

 

“You’re exhausted.”

 

“It’s still morning for me.” Lance sat over the bed and crossed his legs while comfortably hugging the pillow against his chest like it was a stuffed toy. “But if it’ll make you feel better then how about this. Tell me a story, any kind. And maybe, just maybe I’ll close my eyes for a little bit.”

 

Keith let out a huff. “You want me to tell you a bedtime story? Prepared to be bored to death then.”

 

“I highly doubt that. I’ll listen to any story you tell me.” Lance couldn’t say it was as simple as wanting to hear the sound of Keith’s voice. How it was soothing to his ears, and he wanted to keep listening.

 

Keith gave it some thought, looking at the window and then back to Lance before giving a slow nod. “Alright. Deal.”

 

“I knew you would.”

 

“Don’t complain if my story isn’t good enough for you.”

 

Lance shrugged.

 

“Okay then.” Keith cleared his throat. “There’s a story about a group of friends who became galactic space knights and fought alongside, saving the universe from the ultimate bad guys…”

 

Lance, attentive as ever, had to ask, “Who were the bad guys?”

 

“Uh, let’s call them the Beegees.”

 

“What?”

 

“Yeah, the bad guys? Bee and Gee together, you get that?”

 

“You’re making this up, aren’t you?” Lance replied suspiciously, giving him that ‘I’m onto you’ look.

 

“No?!”

 

Lance stared.

 

“You want the story or not?”

 

“Yes…” Lance hugged the pillow tighter.

 

“Then okay. So throughout the far reaches of space, these knights fought and fought against the BeeGees. It was the only way for them to stop the evil from spreading and they had to before they can go back home. It was rough from the beginning, they had to learn to become a team and trust in each other, but one of them felt he didn’t belong…”

 

The story didn’t stop and Lance listened without a comment, hearing Keith speak, seeing how expressive he can get with his hand movements, and his lips twitched and twisted. Lance even discovered the small dimples he hadn’t noticed before and found them to be quite cute.

 

The tale was adventurous and sad. Knowing that the red knight couldn’t go home anymore. Despite a made up story, Lance couldn’t help but wondered if Keith saw himself as the red knight.

 

“But as long as his friends were able to go home then that was enough for him,” Keith ended with that.

 

“Wait, wait! Don’t tell me that’s it?” Lance squeezed the pillow with anticipation.

 

“Well, okay, I admit the author of this story didn’t write a part two but it became popular with the _children_.” Keith had the actual nerve to grin which Lance quickly caught on with an abhor gasp.

 

“I’m not a child!”

 

Keith laughed. “I didn’t say that and you’re not sleeping.”

 

“I think you owe me another story,” Lance shuffled until he lied on the bed and rested against the pillow instead, his hands buried deep under it.

 

“Fine but this is the last one. Maybe you’ll like it.”

 

It was their beginning, how Keith’s first letter started it all. The story had no ending, but it was something both of them were waiting to see how it will all play out.

 

-

 

When Lance woke up again, he found Keith in the same position but sitting on a chair instead with his coat wrapped around him.

 

He hadn’t slept at all.

 

“Hm.” Lance rubbed his face against the pillow and got up. “How… how long was I asleep for?”

 

“Four hours,” Keith answered. “You feeling better?”

 

“Much.”

 

And with that, Keith went over to the bed, taking a seat down next to Lance.

 

“Finally craving for some sleep? I can get off if you want.”

 

“Um, I thought we could have that talk I promised you.” Keith moved his legs on the bed and crossed them. His fingers fidgeted between his legs. He looked as readied as he can be.

 

In fact, Lance sat up and folded his legs against his chest, figured he would be more attentive in this position. He was happy to know Keith kept his promise and now, he was more alert than ever. “Okay, cool. What is it?”

 

“You may think I’m crazy,” Keith blurted, his hand stroked the ends of his hair and curled them between his finger. In fact, his entire frame housed uncertainty but willingly to talk through it.

 

“I think you’re pretty awesome but okay?” Lance raised his brow but he tried. “Crazy can be a good thing, y’know?”

 

“Then don’t think of me too badly.”

 

“I won’t.”

 

“I’ve decided to come with you. To your world.”

 

The gears stopped.

 

“Hold—Hold on.” Lance froze and stared, seeing Keith’s own surprise as well. “Am I hearing this right? You were totally against it before and I get that but why the sudden change? Not like I’m unhappy about the whole thing but holy shit, are you really…”

 

“I, uh, talked to Blue when I gave him the ring back… I never properly thanked you for that, by the way, so thank you.” Keith attempted at a small smile, his left hand gripped his right arm, a struggle encompassing his fingers. An inner battle with himself that Lance read so clearly on his face.

 

“I guess you can say it’s a feeling that I’m running towards and he understands in a way, wanting me to find my own happiness. I thought about what you said before and maybe it’s time to really move on. I’m willing to try if that’s fine with you.” Keith looked down at himself, grasping for more words.

 

Lance softened. “You still love him.”

 

Keith looked back up and sighed. “It’s hard to explain. We loved each other, he was a part of me and I won’t forget that. Right now, I guess I’m in that process of figuring out things for myself.” He almost looked defeated. “It’s difficult but taking that step with you is a start towards somewhere, right?” His lips suddenly trembled and shoulders slacked. “Is it wrong to have these thoughts? To want...”

 

His dam broke into a stream of apologies.

 

“Keith.” Lance reached out and wrapped his arms around the sobbing man. “It’s never wrong, you’re only human after all. We’ll take those steps together and something good will come out of it, okay?”

 

They were going home together.

 

He felt arms snaked around his midriff and head nestled over his shoulder.

 

They stayed like this for a while. Lance rubbing Keith’s back as he listened to the sound of Keith’s breaths coming to a slow.

 

“Your hug is nice.” Keith sniffled.

 

“Good, it’s one of a kind.”

 

This was real. One step at a time, he thought. He promised to be Keith’s support, that pillar of endless strength, to be by his side and live for a better future.

 

The happiness he felt disappeared and confusion racked his mind as he saw a red dot moving along Keith’s arm and traveled toward his head.

 

“No!” Lance pulled Keith forward and the sound of glass broke and a shot nearly missed Keith’s head and into the wall behind them. Lance stared at him in absolute horror. “You okay?”

 

“I’m good.” Keith scrambled and pulled Lance off the bed. Another shot fired and grazed Lance’s arm.

 

“Damn it!” Lance hissed and held his left arm.

 

“Fucking hell! We gotta get out of here!” Keith yelled as he dragged Lance out of the room before another shot whizzed by.

 

“The hell was that?!” Lance yelled, hearing another shot as they passed a window again. They entered down the flight of stairs and ran.

 

“A sniper or you can call it a reaper.” Keith answered, huffing as they worked their way down the floors until they reached the first and exited out the back door. Into the alleyway, their heavy steps pushed on.

 

“How the hell they know we were here?”

 

“I don’t know.” Keith breathed and pointed at the opening between the wire fence. “Through here!”

 

The Reaper came down behind them. A black mask with two red orbs as eyes. A well-trained body, covered in a tight black suit blending in with the night but the purple energies running along the sides of its legs and chest were quite distinct. It wasn’t one for words because it took two hand guns and aimed directly at Keith.

 

“Lance, you keep running, don’t stop for anything. I’ll find you,” Keith remained still and didn’t look back but a sneaky hand reached into his back pocket, fishing out what seemed to be a flash grenade.

 

Yeah, he definitely understood his motive but to leave Keith behind, he didn’t like it one bit.

 

“I’m not leaving you!”

 

“And I’m not giving you an option now GO!” Keith bolted to his left, throwing the small bomb at the enemy before diving into the building window. The entire area lit up and shots were fired, missing Lance as he went through the opening. He ran as fast as he could but he worried about Keith. He was going to make it, he had to. There was no way he was going to die.

 

If only Lance was on a track team of sorts then his stamina would have skyrocketed but he had to believe he can run. The disappointing part was that he had no clue where to go, the unfamiliar streets and emptied buildings during the night scared him but all he can do was run forward, stick to the smaller roads while maintaining some kind of pathway that’ll take him back to the beach. He refused to look back and his lungs felt on fire. In the distance, he heard a rumble of noises but he bit his hips, biting back the unhealthy thoughts.

 

He didn’t know how long he ran for but he stopped to take a breather, into some kind of pharmacy store. He snuck inside and immediately hearing some kind of noise like heavy breathing and his foot crunched on a piece of glass. He paused, sweat build up from the unknown and his stomach fell into unbelievable flips. Memories from the S.C.A.S.

 

The snores continued.

 

What he saw in front of him was something bigger than him, a black mass filled the entire place all curled up, sending chills down his back.

 

He shouldn’t be here.

 

His hand reached for the door and carefully opened it before leaving the building without ever knowing what exactly what was inside, but when he climbed over the wooden gate, he stopped completely.

 

Scavengers.

 

The little devils raised their head, tilting at the sudden stranger in their midst. Three of them inched closer, their clicking noises rose the hairs on Lance’s skin.

 

“Why me…” Lance groaned and tried shooing them away. “Be good boys and run along now. Don’t you have other things to terrorize?” One of them opened its mouth and snapped it shut.

 

He was out.

 

Lance bolted, climbed to the other side and ran across the street. He could hear the screeches behind him, the snapping of wood before he knew he was being chased.

 

He spotted the city’s library in front and passed through the revolving doors, not even bothering to look behind him.

 

Up a flight of stairs he went, taking him to the second floor. He wasn’t sure what to do except run. No way he can fight against those creatures, not like the way Keith did with one of them. He slipped through the maze-like corridors of many books and catched his breath. He moved deeper in and took a gun from his jacket but when a brush of something round caught his attention, he discovered a grenade in his pocket.

 

What?

 

He didn’t remembered bringing one but it dawned on him. Who else but Keith would slip one in without telling him. It was probably one way of protecting Lance and trusted him to use that grenade in a dire situation, and luckily for him, he was in one.

 

Thank you, Keith.

 

Lance stood his ground and the small bomb ready in hand. The scavengers appeared in front of him, the hints of growls like waiting for their meal. He tried to keep himself calm but his heart was racing and his legs itching to move.

 

“Come and get me.”

 

The monsters hissed in displeasure and screeched as loudly as they could before charging in for the kill.

 

Without hesitating, Lance pulled the pin and threw it at them. He quickly unlatched the window next to him and jumped out, finding his landing cushioned by a bush. He covered himself and a loud explosion erupted, destroying the windows in the process. Shards of glass fell on top of him and his ears rang.

 

When everything finally calmed, Lance looked up and saw nothing except a trail of smoke. He assumed those Scavengers were dead and let out an exhausting air. He did it. With no more time to waste, he carried on.

 

He carefully treaded and made sure he wasn’t going to bump into another surprise until he saw a light pointed as his feet. He turned to find Keith above the metal staircase attached to a brick building. He couldn’t be anymore happier and relieved to find him alive and well. He jumped in the air and waved. When Keith came down, Lance didn’t care and took him in his arms and spun him around like everything was okay once more.

 

“You’re alive! Fuck, don’t fucking do that ever again.” Lance stopped, seeing Keith in one piece, but the blood on his shoulder told him differently. “You’re hurt.”

 

“I told you I’ll find you,” Keith spoke confidently but grimaced as he touched his shoulder, seeing the red painted his fingers. “I’ll be fine, it’s nothing serious.”

 

“You’re bleeding, serious or not, we have to stop it. Come on, let me wrap it with something quick before we go.” Lance immediately teared some fabric from his shirt and tightening it around Keith’s wound.“Where’s that sniper? Did you lose him?”

 

“I think so,” Keith answered and moved his shoulder a bit. “Thanks, it’s good…”

 

The sniper appeared as it landed gracefully in front of them and Keith took out his own gun, firing three shots but his left arm was used as a type of shield for the bullets to bounce off.

 

“I’ll take care of him.” Keith charged forward, his blade revealed and he started to swing at his enemy, trying to get in close but his opponent had more experience, the way this contender moved fluidly without getting hurt and blocked every swing that Keith tried to throw at him. Keith tried to land another shot but the gun was flung to the side and all Keith had was for him to aim straight for the heart. The Galra fighter blocked with his left arm once more.

 

Lance refused to stand by and watched. If anything, two versus one was better than waiting for Keith to meet his death. He came in and charged straight at his foe.

 

“Wait, Lance!”

 

Lance knocked the Reaper over and rained down his own share of punches against the mask until it cracked but legs wrapped around and flipped him over. A sharp prick inserted into his neck.

 

“Wh—What?” All of that energy was sucked away, he couldn’t feel any part of his body as if his strength was stolen from him. His mind told him to sleep.

 

“What the hell you did you him?!” Keith was so close to jam the blade into the sniper’s neck but he bolted out of the way and caught Keith by the throat, slamming him into the ground, his back meeting concrete as the air suddenly left his lungs and replaced with a jolt of agonizing pain. “Get off me.” He dug his nails deep, trying to tear him off as he struggled. When nothing worked, Keith made a quick swipe and knocked the mask away to only find his worst fear and an old friend.

 

“Shiro...?” Keith weakly gasped and felt a needle pressed into his skin. Shiro released him and picked up his mask, staring at both of them with cold eyes, no human emotion left but a soldier waiting for the next order.

 

Once Lance saw Shiro’s face, he knew they were both screwed. They lost this time.

 

When his night couldn’t get any worse, any hope he had left completely vanished when he saw Haxus standing before him, a wicked smile like a terrible curse plagued upon their lives.

 

It was a dream.

 

A terrible dream.

 

He wanted to go home with Keith.

 

Sleep.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This section is only part one of two. I had to split it to make it easier on me when I edit. Coming back to this after many months was difficult and I'm sorry for the long wait :\\. I really fell out of the VLD fandom but a part of me didn't want to leave this story in the dust since this chapter was kind of finished a while back. Despite the severe lost of motivation, energy, and life in general, I made it :')
> 
> And I don't know how many are still following me after all this time but thank you to those who are patiently waiting for this to update!
> 
> There's going to be one more part and then an epilogue.

_What we gathered from our observations, the portals were discovered in multiple locations all over the planet. We identified their coordinates and sent response teams onto the field for further study. Once the data were recorded, we analyzed them in this very facility and realized we underestimated the matter entirely._

 

_We did not believe these portals were harmful. It was stagnant in nature but in time, we saw what was happening and labeled three phases these anomalies go through before their life term was up._

 

_The first phase was Stabilization. Once the entity appeared, it stayed in its location and formed a small vortex. But based on its high energy readings over the course of several months, we realized the severity if left alone._

 

_As a result, the S.C.A.S. approved of Project Voltron and devices were created for each portal in order to maintain its normal size. The device was easily wearable on the user’s wrist and with the proper commands, the machine was able to steady the fluctuations by sending a strong magnetic pulse to counteract the energies._

 

_There were no explanations as to why these portals appeared or where they lead to, but the general theory about them was a gateway to another world. A universe similar to ours. Please refer to section VIII for an explanation in more details._

 

_The second step was Expansion. The vortex stretched with a diameter at least 250 feet (7,620 cm) and its energy levels started to fluctuate at abnormal numbers. In conclusion, the device we created had failed and the area around the portal grew unstable. No individual should be allowed to enter the proximity._

 

_Any matter that touched it was sucked into and disintegrated._

 

_The final step was Collapsion. The portal broke down and swallowed the entire area. For more details, refer to The Alpha Ex text written by Dr. Takahashi Shirogane of S.C.A.S._

 

-

 

They found themselves on a ship when they woke up, unable to discern the area they were in except the prison cell. A tinted purple insignia painted on its walls, and a pathway giving away not so much of an escape but a long trail into the darkness.

 

“Hey, you okay?” Lance move to Keith’s side.

 

“Yeah, I’m all right.” Keith added a faint smile and looked around the room.

 

“Where are we?”

 

“One of their ships probably.”

 

“Great.” Lance clicks his tongue. He spots a familiar presence stepping in from the shadows and froze at the sharp stare which sent shivers down his spine as Shiro watched him with disinterest.

 

Lance couldn’t believe it. It ticked him off knowing that someone Keith once called friend was his enemy standing before him and a frightening one, no doubt.

 

Keith pleaded at Shiro to let them go but the latter gave no response.

 

“Hey!” Lance cried out against the bars. “The hell you think you are? You think you’re such a hot shot standing there? Well why don’t you come in here and I’ll show you a thing or two about messing with me.”

 

“Lance…” Keith hissed. His arm shot out over Lance’s arm and firmly squeezed. “Don’t.”

 

Lance heard him just fine but the frustration was clearly written on his face. He looked at Keith who was upset as well and and sighed with understanding. His hands let go of the bars but with Shiro there, it irritated him like a bad itch.

 

With a wave of Shiro’s hand, two sentries entered the cell and each one brought Keith and Lance’s arms behind their backs.

 

“Hey, hey! Get off me!” Lance struggled but the metal cuffs wrapped around his wrists with a click. “I said get off!” He sends a back kick at the first soldier until the instant pain erupted behind his head and fell to his side.

 

“Asshole…” Lance muttered, wincing at the throbbing pain as he was butted with the end of the sentry’s gun.

 

“Move,” the soldier stated, forcing Lance up on his feet and pushed him out of the cell. Keith followed right behind as the second sentry shoved him forward, and Shiro walked behind them without a word.

 

As they traveled down the hall, Lance knew they had to try something. Anything to escape from here and away from Shiro. Lance sent a look at Keith and a silent communication was passed between them, expressing a will of action that must be done. A slight nod from them both was understood. Keith shifted his eyes toward the soldiers, signaling to take them out first, and Lance would have his back.

 

At the same time, they knocked out the soldiers without giving them a means to retaliate.

 

Keith was the first to grab a gun, firing multiple shots with Lance following to do the same. They took the two robots out and their next agenda was to quickly dispose of Shiro but they made a grave mistake once Shiro took control.

 

The fight didn’t last as Keith and Lance’s strength were unmatched against an experienced fighter. The tips of the scale improperly unbalanced as Shiro had the upper hand. Keith was thrown into a wall first and had Lance pinned to the floor, his arm pulled behind his back with the imminent threat of dislocating it.

 

“You think this was going to work?” Shiro said, “that taking me out was the answer? You realize there’s no escape for you. You will stay and you will die one way or another.”

 

“Fuck!” Lance snarled, attempted to buck Shiro off of him but the stabbing pain in his arm reached to an unbearable level. He grimaced, shuddering with every breath while Shiro had a steady hold on him.

 

On the other side, Keith got up, wiping the blood from his lips with his sleeve and pointed a gun at Shiro. “Get off him.” Every word bathed in vehemence.

 

“Or you’ll kill me?” Shiro smiled. “You really think you can do that to your old friend?” He smirked and shifted his hold as Lance held back his whimpers, waiting and waiting at the inevitable. “You forget how powerless you really are.”

 

Suddenly, reinforcements appeared from all sides and surrounded them, their weapons aimed at Keith.

 

“So what’s it going to be?”

 

“Give ‘em hell, Keith!” Lance spilled out but another shooting pain exploded in his arm exploded.

 

“There’s only one answer, Keith. Choose wisely.”

 

-

 

The long hallways and corridors had the same semblance with every turn. Nothing changed, everything was monotonous and repetitive that would drive any human crazy. Lance thought he can remember the directions they had taken but it was too easy to get lost at the replicated designs and the unfashioned doors only accessible to certain users.

 

They finally entered into a room. Shiro stood to the side along with the rest of the sentries surrounding them while Lance and Keith faced the haunting commander who introduced himself as Sendak.

 

The air filled with a sudden chill as fear invaded and seeped into Lance’s very bones. His legs almost faltered at the sight before him but he tried to breathe, calming himself as the seconds passed. He looked over at Keith, frowning because Keith was already on alert, eyes bent with malice. Lance didn’t understand but the victory look on Sendak’s face told him that this wasn’t going to be good.

 

The commander’s attention never left Keith.

 

“I do apologize for my men’s mistreatment but you must understand that your survival is necessary to our cause,” Sendak spoke.

 

Lance’s curiosity grew.

 

“Yeah?” Keith scoffed. “And why’s that?”

 

“Easy. What do you know of Project Voltron?”

 

Keith grew silent.

 

Sendak smiled, even taking note of Lance’s confusion. “To make time on our hands, let me tell you what I want.”

 

Time passed. Keith’s eyes widened as Sendak spoke, and to Lance, he thought it was all bullshit.

 

“That’s suicide!” Keith retorted back in abhor horror. “What makes you think forcing it to expand is going to work? That device isn’t meant for that!”

 

“But you see, the Galra is a mighty race. We are conquerors, we do not fear what’s waiting for us on the other side,” Sendak explained. “We took your notes and used them for our own calculations and ran through every scenario until we had the correct formula.” He grinned. “We’ll be able to expand it to our required size and we will need your cooperation in this. Create the device to our specifications and I might allow you to live rather than dumping your body into the sea.”

 

A fiery anger blossomed. Lance wasn’t going to let that happen, he wasn’t going to leave Keith alone with them.

 

They were going home, that was their plan.

 

“Fuck off.” Lance stated and turned Sendak’s attention on him. “You’re not taking him!” He cried out but was quieted down when a hand fell over his head and brought him down to the hard floor. “I-I won’t let you!” The weight over his head increased as he felt his cheek pressing deep into the cold surface. The loathing he felt for Sendak was indescribable.

 

“Such a display of courage for such an insignificant human.” Sendak became curious. “Bring him closer.”

 

Shiro roughly brought Lance up on his feet and shoved him forward.

 

“You’re an interesting one.” Sendak cupped Lance’s chin, inspecting with a few tilts in wonder and hums in thought as his right hand squeezed flesh. “I discovered something quite amusing today. Do you want to know?”

 

“No.”

 

Sendak expressed a mirth, his lips curled up. “How you’re considered dead in our database.”

 

Lance stilled.

 

“You see, we keep a high profile of humans who are useful to us, their skills and trades of sorts. And their connections as well.” He raked a fine nail over Lance’s lips, drawing a snip of blood.

 

“You are very dead in this world but how fascinating it is to see you alive. A splitting image, no? Your trip crossing over here must’ve been enjoyable. Tell me about that.”

 

“What’re you talking about?” Lance lightly laughed. “That’s a load of crap.” A pretend, a farce, and nothing else but Sendak smiled. He saw right through him.

 

“Playing the fool, I see, but it doesn’t matter.”

 

Without warning, Lance felt a wrecking ball of pain and everything blurred as his body landed across the room, the air escaped from his lungs.

 

“Bastard!” Keith aimed to strike but Shiro held him back.

 

“You do what I asked of you and he’ll be spared,” Sendak said.

 

Lance gasped in pain but he knew the uncertainty in Keith so apparent on his face. He already knew what Keith would choose and his body ached all over as he tried to get up. “Don’t…” He wheezed as he bent his elbows and legs, pushing his body against the wall and righting himself up. “Don’t do it, Keith. It’s not worth it.”

 

“Agree to my terms and I’ll let him live, too. If you don’t then I will kill him where he stands right now.” Sendak lifted his hand in the air and his soldiers aimed at Lance.

 

“Stop!” Keith yelled. His fists balled tightly against his sides. “You promise you won’t hurt him.” He pushed Shiro away and walked up to Sendak, sending a sharp glare his way as the commander only smiled, baring his teeth with pleasure. “You will leave him alone and I’ll do what you ask.”

 

“Why? Is he that important to you? He would only serve as a replacement and nothing more.” Sendak sneered and let out a haughty laugh in the air but Keith didn’t care to answer him.

 

“You have my word, I won’t kill him. His life will be spared.” Sendak responded. “Your answer?”

 

“You can’t do this!” No matter how hard Lance begged for Keith, he saw him slowly giving into Sendak and said “yes”. Lance’s shoulders fell in this sadness, an almost lost of hope and he knows a tragedy was waiting for them eventually.

 

Keith gave him a small smile. There was something about it that made Lance believe it was going to be okay and he wants to believe in that.

 

“Take them away,” Sendak ordered, and they left the room, separated from each other as they went in opposite directions.

 

Lance feared for the upcoming days ahead of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Find me at [ofskinandbones](http://www.ofskinandbones.tumblr.com).


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here's the other half. Going over this, I wondered what my past self was thinking when she wrote this because man, I don't know even know :\\. I wish I could've done more but this is pretty much what I can pull
> 
> Heads up that this chapter is going from T to M rating. Pretty much a Sendak/Lance noncon scene.
> 
> Epilogue is next.

So much of time had passed.

 

Lance hadn’t seen Keith since that moment. He missed him all the time, every single day. He couldn’t stop thinking about the memories, back when he was at home and the only communication he had were the letters from the sea, or seeing Keith by his side and thinking about his face, how it just lit up like fireflies on a summer’s night.

 

Keith was his strength.

 

Days alone, he withstood the brunt of Sendak’s cruel methods of torture.

 

He was promised to be kept alive but nothing about Sendak messing around with him was made certain.

 

There was no means of escape. Lance was kept in darkness without any sense of time. His arms shackled and hung above his head, his muscles ached and burned. He bled, droplets of red, both new and dried accumulated over his cuts and on the ground. All he felt was a slow death but Sendak would make him scream, carving a blade deep against his skin, intricate lines all over like a piece of artwork.

 

The commander said into his ear once. “You will always remember the pain and it will never go away.”

 

Lance underwent a repetitive process as he would pass out from the pain and taken into a pod where it would heal his wounds but he could still feel the marks on his skin like a permanent tattoo.

 

-

 

The first month, Lance was a fighter in his own way. He fought back, giving every kind of hell to make Sendak his worst enemy. Unchained and wild, he unleashed his fury but Sendak proved him to be a kitten without claws. Devilish laughter bathed the room as Lance was thrown to the side every time but he always got up and tried again. He fought, throwing punches and kicks but he fell and fell. It was Sendak looking down upon him that made him get back up.

 

Again and again.

 

Lance refused to break.

 

The yellow and purple discoloration coated around his body over time but Lance never gave up. He demanded to see Keith but wasn’t allowed despite a promise given that he was well taken care of. Lance never believed a word.

 

“As long as he cooperates, his life will be spared, but you, I’m tempted to have you myself but I suppose I can test your limits for now.”

 

“I won’t let you.”

 

Lance swallowed, his stomach filled with this unsettling weight that made him feel as if he was going to drown, suffocating until he begged for air.

 

He needed to see him again.

 

-

 

“He’s a fighter just like our Champion. I was thinking of breaking him, train him into a fearsome warrior as well. Maybe a collar around his neck for discipline.” Sendak spoke to Haxus, glancing at Lance at times. “We could use another for entertainment.”

 

“And bring the human into the ring?” Haxus asked, noting of Lance’s frail body hanging.

 

And Sendak walked over to Lance, leaning forward and poked Lance’s head with mere taps to wake him up. “That would be very amusing. Would you like that? We can throw you in there and he won’t even recognize you.”

 

Lance spat at Sendak’s face, growling against his chains and received a wide grin as the commander wiped the spit off.

 

Sendak looked at Lance as if he was nothing but a sack of a meat waiting to be butchered but the lingering glint in that mechanical eye of something much more was waiting for him made his heart sank.

 

-

 

The second month, his body became used to the blade against his skin. The insignia of the Galra burned on his skin right under his collarbone, courtesy from Sendak himself but Lance’s heart still beated for Keith.

 

-

 

The third month.

 

Lance ignored the revolting touches he felt below as he was strung like a doll against the wall. He refused to give Sendak the satisfaction and held back his cries as those touches violated his every being. Sendak watched carefully as he pumped Lance’s cock in his hand like a lover’s touch while Lance tried to block out the sensation. His arousal grew hard, slick, and obscene from Sendak’s cruelty.

 

“How long has it been since someone touched you like this?”

 

Lance turned his head away, shutting his eyes as he felt his leg parted by the metal hand, baring himself to Sendak and the hot breath ghosting along his naked skin and tasting every inch of him. The commander sucked a nipple, coaxing until fully perk while invading sticky fingers slipped between his crack and started playing with his asshole.

 

“You like this, don’t you?” Sendak smirked and rolled his tongue over the pink bud, receiving another low groan. He teased Lance’s entrance once more before slipping inside him.

 

The strange intrusion disgusted him as the finger buried deep inside, moving and building a steady pace. Lance panted, growing hot and wanting a quick release. He felt a second finger entering and scissoring to make him loose and a third to stretch him further.

 

“Swallowing my fingers like this. You’re a very needy human, Lance.”

 

Before Lance could retort, he reached his peak, his stomach coated in his come while Sendak rubbed his own half-hard cock until fully mast.

 

Lance’s eyes widened at the sight and felt his body being lifted. His “no”s didn’t stop Sendak and felt his entrance swallowing the thick girth but the size was too great.

 

Laughter rang in his ear.

 

“You can take it.”

 

Sendak fucked Lance as he buckled his hips upward, watching Lance’s attempts at stopping him prove to be a failure.

 

Then a spurt of hot liquid filled Lance completely while a hand continued to stroke his dick until his body spasmed into another orgasm. Sendak moved his hips again, grunting as buried into Lance, hitting that prostate over and over until Lance was seeing white once more time before passing out.

 

The next time Lance woke up, he was in a hot bath. A sweet scent filled his nostrils like honey and nectar, immediately calming his senses and relaxed the muscles in his body. He sighed at the wonderful feeling until he noticed he was leaning against fur and looked up to find Sendak in the tub with him.

 

His hands curled at the edge of his freedom but he couldn’t jump out, his arms lacked the strength to pull him up. He grinded his teeth together, refusing to go through with this.

 

“I’m giving you a gift, Lance.” Sendak pulled him back against his chest and fondled his flaccid length in the water.

 

“Fuck you.” The words hang in the air, and Lance choked a sob, growing hard against the slow motions.

 

-

 

The sixth month.

 

Lance was beginning to lose that small hope he clinged onto and waited for another round from Sendak’s visit but when the door opened, he didn’t bothered to look up but when he heard his name being called out, he thought he was hearing things.

 

Lance lifted his head, tired eyes spotted Keith unharmed.

 

“Fuck.” Keith looked at him in shock and ran to his side, hands reaching up and cupping Lance’s face tenderly. Eyes so full of life staring into dull ones. “I’m sorry, fuck, I’m so sorry.” He let out softly as he stroke Lance’s face and curled his fingers in hair.

 

Lance weakly smiled and closed his eyes, feeling the gentle warmth in those touches and the kind voice he still remembered.

 

“N-No, it’s okay, they hurt me but...” Lance tried to add but swallowed. “I’m fine, really.”

 

“No you’re not.” Keith shook his head. “They hurt you, dammit. It’s all my fault, I could’ve stopped this if I knew.”

 

“It’s not.” Lance tilted his head for more of that warmth. “Come on, I’m not dead in some ditch, okay? Sendak did shit to me but I still waited for a long time… even, even when I thought I was beginning to lose it.”

 

“Lance.” Keith carefully touched Lance’s scars, each one made him sadder than the last. “I’m going to get you out of here, just you wait.”

 

“That sounds good.” Lance silently cursed at himself for his watery eyes. “I really want to show you my place, I think you would like it. It has a great view of the ocean, too.”

 

“Is that so?” Keith rested his thumb over Lance’s eye, brushing away a tear drop. Lance closed his eyes and leaned in. “Show me everything when we’re there.”

 

“I will,” Lance said. “Hey, can I ask you something?”

 

“What?”

 

“In case I don’t make it.” Keith glared. “Just hear me out, all right? If shit goes down then at least grant me this small wish before I regret not asking you earlier.”

 

Keith made a deep breath and sighed. “Fine, tell me.”

 

“Can I kiss you?” Lance wasn’t afraid to look at Keith, to really see how beautiful he was and admire who he was to him. The pure surprise was written all over Keith’s face. “I know it’s weird to ask you this and in this position but if I don’t do it, then how can I face everything else. I don’t want—”

 

There was a small press against his lips, warm and so very real. His heart skipped beats like fluttering of wings and how he wished he could wrap Keith in his arms, but he decided not to complain and enjoy this moment. He returned the kiss with a tilt of his head, tender and affectionate. They both experimented slowly, figuring out what this kiss meant for them.

 

For Lance, it became the colors in his world and the beginnings they were meant to have. He parted his mouth a little bit more, deepening the kiss before Keith pulled back, his face dusted with pink.

 

“You waited a long time for this, didn’t you?”

 

“I kind of did when we were still writing letters.”

 

“Oh.” Keith blushed. “I see. Was it okay? It wasn’t bad, right?”

 

Lance breathed and nodded his head. “It was really nice. I would ask for more but is this okay for you? I don’t want to...”

 

That earned him a small smile before Keith kissed him again.

 

-

 

Weeks later.

 

The deafening sound of an explosion startled Lance from his sleep. The door slammed opened and Keith stood at the entrance ready to go, his left arm encased with a black mechanical band over his left arm.

 

“Wha-What’s going on?”

 

Keith rushed over to him, releasing him from his hold with a few turns of a key. He held him tightly as Lance tried to maintain some ground as his feet touched the floor but his limbs were tired and strained from being hoisted up for too long.

 

“Our ticket out of here.” Keith wrapped Lance in his jacket. “We don’t have much time.”

 

“What did you do?” Another explosion erupted.

 

“Would you believe me if I told you Shiro is helping us?”

 

Lance didn’t expect that. “The hell? Since when?”

 

“I know. When I was working on Voltron, Shiro was watching over my work and I had to try. I’ve been convincing him to see reason and make him remember his life before the Galra came. I guess a part of his humanity is still there and he’s buying us time.” Keith grabbed Lance’s right arm and held it over his own shoulder while he tried to support him from his waist as they made it out of the room.

 

“We’re going back to the portal, aren’t we?”

 

“Yeah, think you can make it?”

 

“Hell yeah.” Lance leaned into Keith and hummed quietly as he felt a kiss over his head.

 

-

 

The ship’s alarms blared at every corridor.

 

Keith cleared the way for them, taking down the foot soldiers coming their way. A gun after the other, Lance watched how Keith easily killed them and made every shot count with one blast to the chest and another in the head. He saw the intense concentration while he had Keith’s back, the victory they were aiming for.

 

Once Shiro met up with them, he made their paths easier to maneuver and together, they darted toward the landing pad. Shiro punched in a code and the entrance opened to the outside, a wave of a cold blast slapped their face.

 

“Let’s go.” Shiro took the first step and went, studying their surroundings and luckily, found it empty.

 

“We did it.” Lance breathed in the air and raised his arms up high, stretching them as far as he could. He didn’t mind much of it, he wanted his body to embrace the outside as his senses awakened.

 

“Lance.” Shiro rested a comforting hand over Lance’s shoulder and frowned with regret. “I’m sorry. What you’ve been through, I can’t make amends.”

 

“You’re kidding.” Lance scoffed and gave him a friendly punch in the arm. “You helped us get out of this hellhole we’re in so that’s already something.”

 

“I hurt you and Keith.”

 

“That wasn’t you.” Lance shook his head. “They did horrible things and made you do them. That was all them but thanks to Keith, you’re back.”

 

Shiro could only agree. “Come on, the portal should be right below us.”

 

When Lance walked to the end of the pad, he peered over and spotted the massive size of the portal below. A swirling mass like a black hole. “Is that the portal I came out of?”

 

“It is.” Keith checked the technology on his wrist. “It’s still stable for now. We have to jump, Lance, and when we do, I’ll make sure it’ll close. No Galra will dare cross. Not this ship, not any of those purple freaks.”

 

“Jump?” Lance yelled. “Are you insane?!”

 

Keith raised a brow. “No but this will be your second crossing.”

 

“But we’re jumping off a ship.”

 

“Don’t let go of me and we’ll be fine.”

 

“You guys should go now. I’ll buy you time for as long as I can,” Shiro said, activating his arm blazing in light purple.

 

“No, you’re coming with us,” Keith implored. “There’s nothing for you here.”

 

Shiro smiled, a peaceful look of acceptance and turned to Lance instead, adding, “take care of him. Don’t leave this guy out of your sight. He’s a bit of a troublemaker and complains about paperwork.”

 

“I won’t,” Lance said.

 

“Good.”

 

“Shiro,” Keith frowned. “Wait, you don’t have to do this.”

 

“Don't worry about me. Be happy together, Keith, that’s all I ask. Now get out of here.” Shiro pushed Keith back and into Lance’s chest.

 

He raced back to the entrance and shut the gate behind him, his eyes never left the two or that small bit of happiness he had for them.

 

It was the last time they saw Shiro.

 

“Keith, he’s going to be fine. I think with his skills, he can totally blow this ship up if he wanted to, right?”

 

“Yeah, probably.”

 

“Shiro made his decision and we made ours. So… Is it too late to say that this is insane? Are you really sure about this?” Lance’s legs felt they were unable to move, he wasn’t so sure of himself if he can make that jump but Keith held onto him, a blanket of comfort and protection.

 

“I wish I had the answer but it’s a chance I’m willing to take. You did it for me so let me do it for you this time. I won’t let you go, promise.” Keith held Lance’s hand in his own. “Trust me.”

 

Lance took a deep breath and stepped forward while Keith was right by his side.

 

The two jumped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Find me at [ofskinandbones](http://www.ofskinandbones.tumblr.com).


	15. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And here it is, the epilogue you guys been waiting for. It took way longer than it should but it is what it is. Of course there are some those lingering questions about "what about the second Keith in Lance's world, will they ever meet?" And the answer to that is... they may or they may not. Maybe the Keith here is probably a man in his 80s surrounded with loving family and friends, so that possibility for that is unlikely. Who knows??? I never did planned that far... My goal for this epilogue is to have Keith and Lance that we know to have a beautiful relationship no matter what happens, that's all. 
> 
> Thank you everyone for sticking with me, all your comments, kudos, and subscriptions are very much appreciated. Really means a lot ;^; If you have any questions, let me know and I'll try to answer my best.

Blue.

The color of the sea, the sky, and all things Lance found beauty in, but most of all, he fell in love with the color of Keith’s eyes the most.

There was something about them that Lance adored while waiting for Keith to wake every morning. His fingers touched the mop of messy black hair and traveled over his face, every delicate touch careful, so Keith wouldn’t stir from his rest.

How sleepy eyes became like starlight in the middle of the morning once Keith set his sights on Lance and buried against Lance’s chest as if it was the safest place in the world. Their legs already tangled underneath the thin sheets while Lance held the back of Keith’s head and combed through his hair, hearing a pleasant sigh. Keith nuzzled closer to him, whispering “five more minutes” and a kiss against Lance’s naked skin before he fell back to sleep. Lance loved every moment like this.

While their mornings were soft and speaking of love so ancient, they never grew tired of exploring one another’s body, but Lance always spotted the way Keith would stare at the scar over his chest, a reminder of what was done to him in the past. Fingers grazed over the sensitive area, the bumps of marred pink made Lance shuddered, and Keith stopped from touching him. Keith couldn’t help but felt terrible for not doing anything to save him sooner. Words spill from his tongue of many ways he could’ve done this or that, the bitter anger rose from his throat. All the blame was directed on himself.

But it was Lance who consoled him when he saw how it upset him, preferring his mouth kissing Keith’s face, never leaving any parts unattended. The corner of his eyes, down to the tip of his nose until his mouth was saved for last, a savory part which Lance enjoyed smiling against as he melted into him, feeling the growing heat between them again. Hands melting along the wide canvas of skin and brushing over the dips and curves of Keith’s body, just enough to make him forget the sorrow.

Their love was slow like the ocean. Calm and gentle as the waves met against the shore like a lover’s touch, always coming back for more. But days became a storm for them as they joined together with such passion and fire accumulating in their muscles, never stopping as such strength between them must be released.

A year passed by for them ever since they crossed into Lance’s world and the portal disappeared. They build a new life after that, but it didn’t start as smoothly as one would think.

The first month, Lance showed Keith his small home and hoped it would be Keith’s as well. It took some time for Keith to grow accustomed to, but Lance was full of patience, took things one step at a time. To figure things out for both of them. It wasn’t easy. There were many days when it became difficult because Lance wasn’t always the strongest. The nightmares with Sendak didn’t end. What was done to him was inexcusable.

Lance woke in the middle of the nights, breathing hard and his mind racing of Sendak’s revolting touches. Arms flailing in the air before Keith took him into his arms, hushing him with comfort as he allowed Lance cry against him. The nightmares would repeat, but Keith didn’t care as long as he was able to save him.

Time was what they needed.

As the months grew, Keith’s home was now Lance’s own. His own trinkets placed around the house he found in the waters or his own crafts of dangling seashells hanging outside the front house. Books slowly grew on Lance’s bookshelf, even Lance gifted him an empty journal for his own artistic needs.

Lance would teach Keith how to fish until he was ready enough to catch one on his own. Keith even had the chance to meet the rays and the pod of dolphins that brought him such happiness on his face that Lance wanted to continue seeing. Lance wanted to share more with him.

Then a question popped up once about Lance’s family one day with Keith wondering if he’ll ever meet them. Eventually, Lance answered, and they made a promise that Lance will take him to them when the time was right. That was more than enough for Keith to ask what he meant by that exactly, but of course, Lance with his mischievous grin couldn’t say a word and said that was something Keith needed to figure out himself.

Time continued on until Keith was snooping around and found Lance’s box of letters he saved.

“Hey Lance?” Keith called out from their bedroom.

“Yeah, what up?” Lance entered, stilling at the box in Keith’s hand. “Uh…”

“You kept them?” A minor embarrassment written on Keith’s face as he picked several up, quickly scanning over the crinkled papers while Lance closed the distance between them and sat down next to his partner.

“Yeah, I did. I couldn’t throw them away, y’know? They were important.” Lance took an almost crumpled up piece from the box and a sheepish smile graced his lips over the content of sunsets and sunrises. Keith stared at him with a half-hearted curl of lips upward before he laughed a bit. “What’s that look for? Something on my face?”

“No, no. It’s nothing. I almost forgot about these…” Keith read another and shook his head. “They were a bit awkward, too much of a romantic maybe. I’m sorry.”

Lance shoved his shoulder against Keith’s. “Please, if anyone is awkward. It’s me with my weird ass replies. And to make it even more awkward, we can always read it by the fire and sing some oldies while we’re at it.”

That was more than enough for Keith to grab the letter right out of Lance’s hold and returned it back to the box. “No,” he stated hard with a glare and possibly a cute pout.

“All right, whatever you say.” Lance lifted his hands up in surrender, and Keith relaxed, his back wasn’t as hunched over as before. Instead, Keith rested his head over Lance’s shoulder and stayed like that while the latter watched him, snaking his arm around Keith’s waist.

“Lance.”

“Yeah?”

“Two years from now or three or four. Maybe five is more accurate or maybe longer is necessary.”

“Hm?”

“Would it be possible…”

“Possible…?” Lance’s free hand rolled into Keith’s own, adding reassurance with a squeeze.

“To see you wear a ring of my choosing?”

Lance looked at him, wide eyes in surprise and noticed the tinge of pink over Keith’s cheeks. Keith watched him steadily, a look of hope for them, for this future with Lance by his side. Lance buried his face in Keith’s hair and mentally screamed as loud as he could as if he’s a kid once more, even Keith had snorted and tilted his head until their eyes met.

The color of Keith’s eyes were mystifying once more.

“Tell me?”

“Fuck yes.”

**Author's Note:**

> @[ofskinandbones](http://www.ofskinandbones.tumblr.com).


End file.
